Pediatric HIV Case Identification Across 22 PEPFAR-Supported Countries During the COVID-19 Pandemic, October 2019-September 2020.

During 2020, an estimated 150,000 persons aged 0-14 years acquired HIV globally (1). Case identification is the first step to ensure children living with HIV are linked to life-saving treatment, achieve viral suppression, and live long, healthy lives. Successful interventions to optimize pediatric HIV testing during the COVID-19 pandemic are needed to sustain progress toward achieving Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) 95-95-95 targets.* Changes in HIV testing and diagnoses among persons aged 1-14 years (children) were assessed in 22 U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)-supported countries during October 1, 2019-September 30, 2020. This period corresponds to the two fiscal quarters before the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., Q1 and Q2) and the two quarters after the pandemic began (i.e., Q3 and Q4). Testing was disaggregated by age group, testing strategy, and fiscal year quarter. During October 2019-September 2020, PEPFAR supported 4,312,343 HIV tests and identified 74,658 children living with HIV (CLHIV). The number of HIV tests performed was similar during Q1 and Q2, decreased 40.1% from Q2 to Q3, and increased 19.7% from Q3 to Q4. The number of HIV cases identified among children aged 1-14 years (cases identified) increased 7.4% from Q1 to Q2, decreased 29.4% from Q2 to Q3, and increased 3.3% from Q3 to Q4. Although testing in outpatient departments decreased 21% from Q1 to Q4, testing from other strategies increased during the same period, including mobile testing by 38%, facility-based index testing (offering an HIV test to partners and biological children of persons living with HIV) by 8%, and testing children with signs or symptoms of malnutrition within health facilities by 7%. In addition, most tests (61.3%) and cases identified (60.9%) were among children aged 5-14 years (school-aged children), highlighting the need to continue offering HIV testing to older children. These findings provide important information on the most effective strategies for identifying CLHIV during the COVID-19 pandemic. HIV testing programs should continue to use programmatic, surveillance, and financial data at both national and subnational levels to determine the optimal mix of testing strategies to minimize disruptions in pediatric case identification during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sex Differences in HIV Testing - 20 PEPFAR-Supported Sub-Saharan African Countries, 2019.

Despite progress toward controlling the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic, testing gaps remain, particularly among men and young persons in sub-Saharan Africa (1). This observational study used routinely collected programmatic data from 20 African countries reported to the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) from October 2018 to September 2019 to assess HIV testing coverage and case finding among adults (defined as persons aged ≥15 years). Indicators included number of HIV tests conducted, number of HIV-positive test results, and percentage positivity rate. Overall, the majority of countries reported higher HIV case finding among women than among men. However, a slightly higher percentage positivity was recorded among men (4.7%) than among women (4.1%). Provider-initiated counseling and testing (PITC) in health facilities identified approximately two thirds of all new cases, but index testing had the highest percentage positivity in all countries among both sexes. Yields from voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) and mobile testing varied by sex and by country. These findings highlight the need to identify and implement the most efficient strategies for HIV case finding in these countries to close coverage gaps. Strategies might need to be tailored for men who remain underrepresented in the majority of HIV testing programs.

Scaling Up Testing for Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection Among Contacts of Index Patients - 20 Countries, 2016-2018.

In 2017, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimated that worldwide, 36.9 million persons were living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, the virus infection that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Among persons with HIV infection, approximately 75% were aware of their HIV status, leaving 9.4 million persons with undiagnosed infection (1). Index testing, also known as partner notification or contact tracing, is an effective case-finding strategy that targets the exposed contacts of HIV-positive persons for HIV testing services. This report summarizes data from HIV tests using index testing in 20 countries supported by CDC through the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) during October 1, 2016-March 31, 2018. During this 18-month period, 1,700,998 HIV tests with 99,201 (5.8%) positive results were reported using index testing. The positivity rate for index testing was 9.8% among persons aged ≥15 years and 1.5% among persons aged <15 years. During the reporting period, HIV positivity increased 64% among persons aged ≥15 years (from 7.6% to 12.5%) and 67% among persons aged <15 years (from 1.2% to 2.0%). Expanding index testing services could help increase the number of persons with HIV infection who know their status, are initiated onto antiretroviral treatment, and consequently reduce the number of persons who can transmit the virus.

Meeting Men Where they are: Motivators and Barriers to Accessing Health Services through a Men's Mobile Wellness Clinic, October 2019 to March 2020, Blantyre, Malawi.

BACKGROUND: In Malawi approximately, 88.3% people living with HIV are aware of their HIV status. Significant gaps are among men aged 15-34 years; only 72% know their HIV status. To reach men, Jhpiego, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MOH), implemented the Men's Mobile Wellness Clinic (MMWC) at workplace settings in Blantyre, Malawi between October 2019 and March 2020. METHODS: We conducted a descriptive qualitative study to understand motivators and barriers to MMWC service uptake by employees and employers. Primary data was drawn from in-depth telephone interviews from four study populations: employers who accepted or declined to host the MMWC at their worksite, and employees who accessed or did not access the services. We performed a thematic analysis using Nvivo 12 software to identify patterns and themes across the dataset. FINDINGS: Main reasons given for using the service among male employees were a desire to know their health status, availability of free health services at the workplace, and good quality services offered by MMWC staff, and support from their supervisor. Men who did not access services stated reasons such as work-clinic scheduling conflicts, lack of adequate promotion of the service, and miscommunication on the criteria about who should attend the MMWC. Employers who accepted to host the MMWC stated convenience and employee's rights to know their health status. Those who declined either stated that employees did not want the services or COVID-19 preventive measures by the MOH between October 2019 and March 2020 restricted participation. CONCLUSION: This study underscores the potential utility of MMWC services including HIV testing among men. The desire to know their health status, availability of free MMWC services at the workplace, good quality services offered by MMWC staff, and the endorsement of MMWC by supervisors were main motivators to access the MMWC services. Sensitizing supervisors and employees about the benefits of the MMWC services, strengthening demand creation, and clarifying eligibility are important to facilitate MMWC uptake among men in Malawi.

HIV risk behaviour, viraemia, and transmission across HIV cascade stages including low-level viremia: Analysis of 14 cross-sectional population-based HIV Impact Assessment surveys in sub-Saharan Africa.

As antiretroviral treatment (ART) coverage for people living with HIV (PLHIV) increases, HIV programmes require up-to-date information about evolving HIV risk behaviour and transmission risk, including those with low-level viremia (LLV; >50 to ≤1000 copies/mL), to guide prevention priorities. We aimed to assess differences in sexual risk behaviours, distribution of viral load (VL) and proportion of transmission across PLHIV subgroups. We analysed data from Population-based HIV Impact Assessment surveys in 14 sub-Saharan African countries during 2015-2019. We estimated adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) of self-reported HIV high-risk behaviour (multiple partners and condomless sex) across cascade stages via generalised estimation equations. We modelled the proportions of transmission from each subgroup using relative self-reported sexual risk, a Hill function for transmission rate by VL, and proportions within cascade stages from surveys and UNAIDS country estimates for 2010-2020. Compared to PLHIV with undetectable VL (≤50 copies/mL), undiagnosed PLHIV (aPR women: 1.28 [95% CI: 1.08-1.52]; men: 1.61 [1.33-1.95]) and men diagnosed but untreated (2.06 [1.52-2.78]) were more likely to self-report high-risk sex. High-risk behaviour was not significantly associated with LLV. Mean VL was similar among undiagnosed, diagnosed but untreated, and on ART but non-suppressed sub-groups. Across surveys, undiagnosed and diagnosed but untreated contributed most to transmission (40-91% and 1-41%, respectively), with less than 1% from those with LLV. Between 2010 and 2020, the proportion of transmission from individuals on ART but non-suppressed increased. In settings with high ART coverage, effective HIV testing, ART linkage, and retention remain priorities to reduce HIV transmission. Persons with LLV are an increasing share of PLHIV but their contribution to HIV transmission was small. Improving suppression among PLHIV on ART with VL ≥1000 copies/mL will become increasingly important.

HIV Recent Infection and Past HIV Testing History Among Newly HIV-Diagnosed 15-24-Year-Olds in Malawi: An Analysis of 2019-2022 HIV Recent Infection Surveillance Data.

Awareness of HIV status in Malawi is 88.3% and lowest among 15-24-year-olds (76.2%). There is a need to understand HIV testing history and transmission in this age group. We analyzed pooled HIV surveillance data to describe testing history and HIV recent infection among 8,389 HIV-positive 15-24-year-olds from 251 sites in Malawi between 2019 and 2022. Most HIV-positive 15-24-year-olds were female; aged 23-24 years; rural residents; and diagnosed at voluntary counseling and testing. No prior HIV testing was reported in 43.5% and 32.9% of 15-19-year-olds and males, respectively. Overall, 4.9% of HIV-positive diagnoses were classified as recent HIV infections, with the highest proportions among breastfeeding women (8.2%); persons tested at sexually transmitted infection clinics (9.0%); persons with a prior negative test within 6 months (13.0%); and 17-18-year-olds (7.3%). Tailored and innovative HIV prevention and testing strategies for young adolescents, young males, and pregnant and breastfeeding women are needed for HIV epidemic control.