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HWN Suggests

Overcoming the real – and perceived – barriers to HIV testing

To encourage people to test more frequently, campaigns should continue to focus on the fact that HIV doesn’t discriminate. HIV testing also increases the opportunity to screen for multiple conditions, such as tuberculosis and other sexually transmitted infections, at the same time. This integration of HIV testing services with other health services is seen as a way of reducing stigma, increasing access, and is a move towards achieving universal health care.

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Featured

 Send Every American a Free Home HIV Test

We’re all used to swabbing now, and the government has committed to diagnosing people as early as possible.

Articles of Interest

This Is How the HIV Test Was Invented

This Monday, June 27, is National HIV Testing Day. The day was created in 1995 by the National Association of People With AIDS to increase the number of people being tested for HIV, and got off to a successful start. But, although the percentage of people living in the U.S. with undiagnosed HIV has been decreasing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 1 in 8 people who are HIV positive still don’t know it. These early tests weren’t actually designed to diagnose patients with AIDS or HIV. Instead, they were designed to screen donated blood for possible infection.

Today Is National HIV Testing Day: Have You Ever Gotten the Test?

The latest stats are sobering. One in five Americans is living with HIV and isn't even aware of it. Worse: Statistics tell us that 40 percent of people with HIV aren't diagnosed until they have developed full-fledged AIDS, and that can take as long as 10 years after being infected.

An HIV-prevention drug is widely available. Yet at-risk women are getting left behind

In the U.S., women account for a fifth of new infections. But a persistent lack of education means few even know about the highly effective medication known as PrEP.

HIV self-test kits are meant to empower those at risk − but they don’t necessarily lead to starting HIV treatment or prevention

HIV self-test kits were developed to make it easier for people to access HIV testing. However, our research team has found that many people who use self-test kits do not go on to receive needed HIV treatment or start preexposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, to prevent future infection.

HIV Testing Overview

If you get an HIV test outside of a health care setting or lab—such as at a community-based organization, mobile testing van, or elsewhere—you will likely receive a rapid HIV test.

HIV tests for GPs' new patients could save lives and money, says study

Researchers find fourfold increase in diagnosis rate when testing carried out as part of surgeries’ registration health check

How street teams and vending machines are helping to eradicate HIV

Easier access to HIV tests and better medical treatment has led to a sharp fall in infections. But stigma is still a problem.

Price Of HIV Test Falls, Raising Hopes In Global AIDS Fight

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, along with several other development agencies, has brokered an agreement to make routine HIV tests more accessible. They're aiming to make HIV viral load tests available for $12 a piece, slashing the price in some markets by more than 50 percent.

Resources

CDC

All people between the ages of 13 and 64 should be tested for HIV at least once as part of routine health care, and those at ongoing risk should be tested more frequently.

StatPearls

An estimated 15% of patients living with HIV in the United States (US) are unaware of their status. HIV testing needs to be incorporated into every level of the healthcare system to diagnose HIV as early as possible. It is estimated that 40% of new infections of HIV are transmitted by those who are not aware of their HIV diagnosis. Early detection reduces the complications of HIV infection and decreases the risk of transmission.