Category Archives: Testing
Cost-effectiveness of point-of-care versus centralised, laboratory-based nucleic acid testing for diagnosis of HIV in infants: A systematic review of modelling studies
BACKGROUND: Point-of-care (POC) nucleic acid testing for diagnosis of HIV in infants facilitates earlier initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) than with centralised (standard-of-care, SOC) testing, but can be more expensive....
Acceptance and associated factors of HIV testing among college students in China: A systematic review and meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: Although HIV testing is helpful for early detection and treatment of HIV, its utilization rate is low among college students in China. Understanding the acceptance and associated factors of...
Cutting edge strategies for screening of novel anti-HIV drug candidates against HIV infection: A concise overview of cell based assays
The advent of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy has majorly contributed towards reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with HIV infected people, thus improving the quality of their life. Still, the...
Evolving the gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men time-based deferral to sexual risk screening for all donors: The contribution of Canadian research programmes
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: In Canada, the time deferral for gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (gbMSM) to donate blood has gradually decreased. In September 2022, this...
Lifetime prevalence and adherence rate of cervical cancer screening among women living with HIV: A systematic review and meta-analysis
INTRODUCTION: Women living with HIV (WLWH) are more likely to develop cervical cancer. Screening and available healthcare can effectively reduce its incidence and mortality rates. We aimed to summarize the...
Trends in HIV testing, the treatment cascade, and HIV incidence among men who have sex with men in Africa: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) are disproportionately affected by HIV. In Africa, MSM face structural barriers to HIV prevention and treatment that increase their...
Uptake and barriers to cervical cancer screening among human immunodeficiency virus-positive women in Sub Saharan Africa: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: Cervical cancer is the leading cause of disability and mortality among women in Africa. Despite a significant correlation between HIV/AIDS and cervical cancer, there is unacceptably low coverage of the...
Integration of sexually transmitted infection and HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis services in sub-Saharan Africa: A scoping review
BACKGROUND: Persons living in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) face disproportionate risk from overlapping epidemics of HIV and bacterial sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for prevention is gradually being scaled...
Preferences for oral- vs blood-based human immunodeficiency virus self-testing: A scoping review of the literature
BACKGROUND: The evidence on preferences for oral- vs blood-based human immunodeficiency virus self-testing (HIVST) has been heterogenous and inconclusive. In addition, most evaluations have relied on hypothetical or stated use...
Effectiveness of behavioural economics informed interventions for the prevention, screening, and antiretroviral treatment of HIV infection: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials
Failure to meet international targets set for the human immunodeficiency virus HIV pandemic suggests that more effective public health strategies are needed. New strategies informed by behavioural economics are now...
Performances of Dried Blood Spots and Point-of-Care Devices to Identify Virological Failure in HIV-Infected Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
To broaden access to HIV viral load monitoring (VLM), the use of blood samples from dried blood spots (DBS) or point-of-care (POC) devices, could be of great help in settings...
