New Frontiers in HIV Testing
Less visible and not as well recognized by the general public–but equally impressive in their own right– are the progressive improvements that have taken place in laboratory science since the first test to diagnose HIV was licensed in 1985.
A symposium this week at the 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI)
Of course, advances in HIV testing technology are only beneficial to the degree that they are put into practice. Namely, ensuring that HIV testing is widely available and that test results empower/enable the person being tested to make positive health choices. This includes prompt referral to care for those who are found to be infected with HIV and ongoing prevention support for high-risk seronegative persons.
Dr. Blayne Cutler from the New York City Department of Health shared New York City’s successful experience with expanding access to HIV testing. Employing a multi-pronged strategy that included incentives (for example, performance contracts), social marketing campaigns, targeted technical assistance, and legislative change, their efforts have resulted in over 700,000 HIV tests being performed and 2,000 new HIV diagnoses.
Other panel presentations included Ms. Nduku Kilonzo who spoke about her experiences scaling-up HIV counseling and testing services in Kenya and Dr. Patrick Sullivan who described various aspects of HIV results disclosure, including couples testing programs for gay men.
Other presentations at CROI dealt with the important issue of promoting early HIV diagnosis and facilitating linkage into life-saving care. Please take the time to visit the CROI website and read these abstracts
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