Toward 90-90-90: identifying those who have never been tested for HIV and differences by sex in Lesotho

Uptake of HIV testing among aging adults in Agincourt, South Africa: perception of community, social network, and individual characteristics

This cross-sectional study examined the impact of perception of community, social network and individual variables on the likelihood of voluntary HIV testing of people 40 years and older living in Agincourt, South Africa. The data came from Health and Aging in Africa: A Longitudinal Study of an INDEPTH Community in SA (HAALSI) Cohort from Agincourt. We applied three logistic regression models. Results showed that voluntary uptake of HIV testing was significantly associated with two network factors, namely friendships within the network and frequency of fighting in the network. At the community level, attachment to place was significantly associated with voluntary testing, while at the individual level, education, sexual behaviour, employment and age were significantly associated with the voluntary uptake of HIV testing. The implications of these findings are that age-appropriate interventions must be devised to sensitise older people in Agincourt about HIV risks. Also, leadership at the community level and in social networks must encourage members to consider voluntary testing for their own and community interests.

High HIV Detection in a Tertiary Facility in Liberia: Implications and Opportunities

Background:

HIV/AIDS remains one of the world’s most significant public health challenges; sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 71% of the global burden of HIV. Testing for HIV is pivotal to achieving UNAIDS 95-95-95 target towards bringing an end to the epidemic.

Objective:

The study assessed five-year HIV testing data from the largest tertiary hospital in Monrovia, Liberia and highlights risk groups that would benefit from targeted testing and prevention interventions.

Methods:

This was a single-center academic hospital-based retrospective analysis of HIV testing data from January 2014 to December 2018 obtained from all testing sites at John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Monrovia, Liberia. Pooled HIV testing data during the study period were analyzed using descriptive statistics and stratified by age, gender and pregnancy status. Annual diagnoses rates were reported as proportion of individuals tested within a specified category (age [<15 years, age 15–24 years and >=25 years], gender, and pregnancy status) that had a positive HIV test. Five-year trends were analyzed.

Results:

Over the study period, 41,343 non-pregnant individuals were screened for HIV. In addition, the antenatal clinic performed 24,913 tests. Of non-pregnant individuals tested, 4,066 (10%) were diagnosed with HIV ranging from 7% (909/12821) in 2018 to 13% (678/5079) in 2014. Case detection rates for individuals aged 15–24 were 7%, 5%, 4%, 6% and 3% for years 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively. Annually, 2–3% of all pregnant women tested were diagnosed with HIV. While HIV detection rates decreased over time overall, children less than 15 years of age showed an annual increase from 6.7% in 2014 to 12.3% in 2018.

Conclusion:

A large five-year dataset from the largest tertiary facility in Liberia shows broad HIV detection rates that are much higher than national prevalence estimates. Ramping up HIV testing and prevention interventions including pre-exposure prophylaxis are sorely needed.

HIV non-testing, perpetration of violence against women, and sexual risk-behaviour: A cross-sectional analysis of South African peri-urban township men

Despite HIV testing having improved globally, men remain disproportionately less likely to test for HIV. While violence against women (VAW) and HIV risk have a strong association among women, few studies explore men around VAW perpetration, risky-sexual behaviour, and HIV testing. Males aged 18-42 years were recruited from a peri-urban settlement near Johannesburg, South Africa. Data were from an endline of a trial. We used logistic regression to assess odds of non-HIV testing using STATA 13. At endline, 1508 men participated in the study. Of these nearly one-third (31.6%, n = 475) had not tested for HIV in the past year. HIV non-testing was significantly lower among men who were single, older, did not complete high school and were less food secure. VAW perpetration retained a significant association with HIV non-testing after controlling for socio-demographics (AOR = 0.73, 95%CI = 0.58-0.93). In multivariate models, HIV non-testing was also associated with inconsistent condom use (AOR = 0.64, 95%CI = 0.48-0.85), problem drinking (AOR = 0.72, 95%CI = 0.55-0.94) and reporting of all four risky sexual behaviours (AOR = 0.70, 95%CI = 0.49-1.01). Data suggests that one-third of men who never test for HIV in this setting may represent a high-risk group. Future campaigns could consider behaviour change around non-violence, relationship quality, and gender norms alongside HIV testing.

Cluster randomised controlled trial to determine the effect of peer delivery HIV self-testing to support linkage to HIV prevention among young women in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: a study protocol

INTRODUCTION

A cluster randomised controlled trial (cRCT) to determine whether HIV self-testing (HIVST) delivered by peers either directly or through incentivised peer-networks, could increase the uptake of antiretroviral therapy and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among young women (18 to 24 years) is being undertaken in an HIV hyperendemic area in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

A three-arm cRCT started mid-March 2019, in 24 areas in rural KwaZulu-Natal. Twenty-four pairs of peer navigators working with ~12 000 young people aged 18 to 30 years over a period of 6 months were randomised to: (1) incentivised-peer-networks: peer-navigators recruited participants 'seeds' to distribute up to five HIVST packs and HIV prevention information to peers within their social networks. Seeds receive an incentive (20 Rand = US$1.5) for each respondent who contacts a peer-navigator for additional HIVST packs to distribute; (2) peer-navigator-distribution: peer-navigators distribute HIVST packs and information directly to young people; (3) standard of care: peer-navigators distribute referral slips and information. All arms promote sexual health information and provide barcoded clinic referral slips to facilitate linkage to HIV testing, prevention and care services. The primary outcome is the difference in linkage rate between arms, defined as the number of women (18 to 24 years) per peer-navigators month of outreach work (/pnm) who linked to clinic-based PrEP eligibility screening or started antiretroviral, based on HIV-status, within 90 days of receiving the clinic referral slip.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Boards at the WHO, Switzerland (Protocol ID: STAR CRT, South Africa), London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK (Reference: 15 990-1), University of KwaZulu-Natal (BFC311/18) and the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health (Reference: KZ_201901_012), South Africa. The findings of this trial will be disseminated at local, regional and international meetings and through peer-reviewed publications.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

NCT03751826; Pre-results.

Exploring People's Candidacy for Mobile Health-Supported HIV Testing and Care Services in Rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: Qualitative Study

BACKGROUND

The use of mobile communication technologies (mHealth: mobile health) in chronic disease management has grown significantly over the years. mHealth interventions have the potential to decentralize access to health care and make it convenient, particularly in resource-constrained settings. It is against this backdrop that we aimed to codevelop (with potential users) a new generation of mobile phone-connected HIV diagnostic tests and Web-based clinical care pathways needed for optimal delivery of decentralized HIV testing, prevention, and care in low- and middle-income countries.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to understand ways in which an mHealth intervention could be developed to overcome barriers to existing HIV testing and care services and promote HIV self-testing and linkage to prevention and care in a poor, HIV hyperendemic community in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

METHODS

A total of 54 in-depth interviews and 9 focus group discussions were conducted with potential users (including health care providers) in 2 different communities. Theoretically informed by the candidacy framework, themes were identified from the interview transcripts, manually coded, and thematically analyzed.

RESULTS

Participants reported barriers, such as fear of HIV identity, stigma, long waiting hours, clinic space, and health care workers' attitudes, as major impediments to effective uptake of HIV testing and care services. People continued to reassess their candidacy for HIV testing and care services on the basis of their experiences and how they or others were treated within the health systems. Despite the few concerns raised about new technology, mobile phone-linked HIV testing was broadly acceptable to potential users (particularly men and young people) and providers because of its privacy (individual control of HIV testing over health provider-initiated testing), convenience (individual time and place of choice for HIV testing versus clinic-based testing), and time saving.

CONCLUSIONS

Mobile phone-connected HIV testing and Web-based clinical care and prevention pathways have the potential to support access to HIV prevention and care, particularly for young people and men. Although mHealth provides a way for individuals to test their candidacy for HIV services, the barriers that can make the service unattractive at the clinic level will also need to be addressed if potential demand is to turn into actual demand.

Factors influencing HIV risk-taking behaviours amongst textile factory workers living with HIV in Lesotho

With its number of employees ranging from 45,310 to 46,000, the textile and apparel industry is the main private sector employer of labour in Lesotho. It has been reported that a third (an estimated 34%) of these workers are living with HIV. There is perception that textile factory workers living with HIV (TFWLWH) in Lesotho indulge in HIV risk-taking behaviours. However, no study has yet investigated or documented factors that influence risk-taking behaviours amongst these workers. Transmitting the disease to others, treatment complications and death consequent to HIV reinfection are complications associated with HIV risk-taking behaviours by seropositive individuals. Using an in-depth, face-to-face, semi-structured interview, this study obtained the perspectives of ten factory workers from three randomly selected textile factories in Maseru, Lesotho on factors that influence HIV-risk taking behaviour amongst TFWLWH in Lesotho. Analysis of the comments given by workers revealed four core themes, namely, peer pressure, communication, cultural norms and societal norms. Determining the predictors of HIV risk-taking behaviours amongst these workers will inform both present and future interventions aimed at supporting textile factory workers living with HIV in Lesotho. This supports the need for continued research to identify HIV risk-taking behaviours by people living with HIV countrywide, to decrease the incidence of new infections and complications arising from reinfection.

Shedding light on a HIV blind spot: Factors associated with men's HIV testing in five African countries

Men's relatively low rates of HIV testing has been termed the 'HIV blind spot' and recently declared by UNAIDS as a top priority. This study uses data from five nationally representative Demographic and Health Surveys in Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe to explore factors associated with men's lifetime HIV testing. Between 29.3% and 34.9% of men ages 15-49 in these countries had never tested for HIV and men who held accepting attitudes towards gender-based violence, who lacked HIV knowledge, and who held stigmatising views of HIV were more likely to report never testing for HIV. Findings are interpreted, including a discussion of the possible unintended consequences of current 90-90-90 targets on men's relatively low testing rates. The results point to possible intervention opportunities to increase HIV testing among men in high-HIV prevalence settings in Eastern and Southern Africa and emphasise the importance of changing men's perceptions related to stigma and gender norms.

"He Told Me to Check My Health": A Qualitative Exploration of Social Network Influence on Men's HIV Testing Behavior and HIV Self-Testing Willingness in Tanzania

Men continue to test for HIV at a low rate in sub-Saharan Africa. Recent quantitative evidence from sub-Saharan Africa indicates that encouragement to test for HIV from men’s network members is associated with higher previous HIV testing and HIV self-testing (HIVST) willingness. Leveraging this positive network influence to promote HIVST among men is a promising strategy that could increase HIV testing. This study investigated the reasons and strategies men used to encourage their peers to test for HIV and the outcomes in order to inform the development of a social network-based HIVST intervention for men called STEP (Self-Testing Education and Promotion). Twenty-three men from networks locally referred to as “camps” were interviewed to explore reasons for encouraging HIV testing, strategies to encourage HIV testing, and outcomes of HIV testing encouragement. Reasons men reported for encouraging their peers to test for HIV included awareness of their peers’ risky sexual behavior, knowing an HIV-positive peer, and having HIV testing experience. Strategies for encouraging testing included engaging in formal and informal conversations and accompanying friends to the clinic. Encouragement outcomes included HIV testing for some men while others remained untested due to lack of privacy in the clinic and fear of HIV stigma. Willingness to self-test for HIV and an interest to educate peers about HIVST were other outcomes of HIV testing encouragement. These findings underscore the potential of leveraging men’s existing HIV testing encouragement strategies to promote HIVST among their peers.

Progress towards the UNAIDS 90-90-90 goals by age and gender in a rural area of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: a household-based community cross-sectional survey

BACKGROUND

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has developed an ambitious strategy to end the AIDS epidemic. After eight years of antiretroviral therapy (ART) program we assessed progress towards the UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets in Mbongolwane and Eshowe, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional household-based community survey using a two-stage stratified cluster probability sampling strategy. Persons aged 15-59 years were eligible. We used face-to-face interviewer-administered questionnaires to collect information on history of HIV testing and care. Rapid HIV testing was performed on site and venous blood specimens collected from HIV-positive participants for antiretroviral drug presence test, CD4 count and viral load. At the time of the survey the CD4 threshold for ART initiation was 350 cells/μL. We calculated progression towards the 90-90-90 UNAIDS targets by estimating three proportions: HIV positive individuals who knew their status (first 90), those diagnosed who were on ART (second 90), and those on ART who were virally suppressed (third 90).

RESULTS

We included 5649/6688 (84.5%) individuals. Median age was 26 years (IQR: 19-40), 62.3% were women. HIV prevalence was 25.2% (95% CI: 23.6-26.9): 30.9% (95% CI: 29.0-32.9) in women; 15.9% (95% CI: 14.0-18.0) in men. Overall progress towards the 90-90-90 targets was as follows: 76.4% (95% CI: 74.1-78.6) knew their status, 69.9% (95% CI: 67.0-72.7) of those who knew their status were on ART and 93.1% (95% CI: 91.0-94.8) of those on ART were virally suppressed. By sex, progress towards the 90-90-90 targets was: 79%-71%-93% among women; and 68%-68%-92% among men (p-values of women and men comparisons were < 0.001, 0.443 and 0.584 respectively). By age, progress was: 83%-75%-95% among individuals aged 30-59 years and 64%-58%-89% among those aged 15-29 years (p-values of age groups comparisons were < 0.001, < 0.001 and 0.011 respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

In this context of high HIV prevalence, significant progress has been achieved with regards to reaching the UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets. The third 90, viral suppression in people on ART, was achieved among women and men. However, gaps persist in HIV diagnosis and ART coverage particularly in men and individuals younger than 30 years. Achieving 90-90-90 is feasible but requires additional investment to reach youth and men.