Category Archives: Testing
Implementation science for the prevention and treatment of HIV among adolescents and young adults in sub-Saharan Africa: A scoping review
Despite many evidence-based adolescent and young adult (AYA) HIV interventions, few are implemented at scale in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). A growing implementation science literature provides important context for scaling up...
HIV voluntary counseling and testing (VCT-HIV) effectiveness for sexual risk-reduction among key populations: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: HIV disproportionately affects people who inject drugs, transgender people, sex workers, men who have sex with men, and incarcerated people. Recognized as key populations (KP), these groups face increased impact...
The performance of using dried blood spot specimens for HIV-1 viral load testing: A systematic review and meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: Accurate routine HIV viral load testing is essential for assessing the efficacy of antiretroviral treatment (ART) regimens and the emergence of drug resistance. While the use of plasma specimens...
Determinants of voluntary counseling and testing service uptake among adult sub-Saharan Africans: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Objective: To examine the major determinants of VCT service uptake among adults in SSA. Methods: Electronic databases were searched to identify eligible English language publications. Reporting of the study selection...
Screening performance of C-reactive protein for active pulmonary tuberculosis in HIV-positive patients: A systematic review with a meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading infectious cause of mortality worldwide. In the last years, resistant strains of the etiological agent, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, have emerged, thus demanding more triage tests...
Comparing the effects of oral HIV self-testing with those of standard HIV testing for men who have sex with men (MSM): A systematic review and meta-analysis
The WHO recommends HIV self-testing (HIVST) as an innovative strategy and an additional testing approach to attain UNAIDS targets to end HIV by 2030. HIVST is a process whereby a...
A systematic review of limiting antigen avidity enzyme immunoassay for detection of recent HIV-1 infection to expand supported applications
INTRODUCTION: The need for detection of new and recent HIV infections is essential for surveillance and assessing interventions in controlling the epidemic. HIV recency assays are one way of providing...
Linkage to HIV care following HIV self-testing among men: Systematic review of quantitative and qualitative studies from six countries in sub-Saharan Africa
Gender disparities are pervasive throughout the HIV care continuum in sub-Saharan Africa, with men testing, receiving treatment, and achieving viral suppression at lower rates, and experiencing mortality at higher rates,...
Evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on accessing HIV services in South Africa: A systematic review
Progress has been made towards controlling the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) epidemic in South Africa. However, the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has disrupted access to health care. This...
HIV testing uptake according to opt-In, opt-out or risk-based testing approaches: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Purpose of review: Improving HIV testing uptake is essential to ending the HIV pandemic. HIV testing approaches can be opt-in, opt-out or risk-based. This systematic review examines and compares the uptake...
Do couple-based interventions show larger effects in promoting HIV preventive behaviors than individualized interventions in couples? A systematic review and meta-analysis of 11 randomized controlled trials
This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to compare the effects of couple-based prevention interventions against individual-level interventions on HIV prevention in randomized controlled trials (RCTs), identify potential moderators, and assess...
