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HIV self-testing safe and accurate: Study

Published

9 years ago

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London: HIV self-testing (HIVST) that involves training individuals to perform and interpret their own HIV test may prove to be a widely used, safe and accurate method of controlling the epidemic, new research has found.

These findings suggest that scaling-up HIV self-testing could complement existing strategies for the control of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, only one quarter of adults have had a recent test and only half of people with HIV know their status, the study noted.

“Scaling up HIVST could have a sustained impact on the coverage of HIV testing and care in Africa, especially for men and adolescents,” sid the authors of the study led by Liz Corbett of London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and colleagues.

The researchers evaluate the effectiveness of the method in a two-year community-based prospective study of HIVST in Blantyre, Malawi.

Three-quarters of the residents in the study self-tested (with highest uptake seen in women and adolescents, but also unusually good participation by men), and more than half of the 1,257 participants who discovered they were HIV-positive accessed HIV care.

Importantly, 94.6 percent of the participants reported that they were “highly satisfied” with HIVST even though 2.9 percent reported being forced to take the test, usually by a main partner.

No HIVST-related partner violence or suicides occurred, the study noted.

The findings appeared in the journal PLOS Medicine.

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Corona

Covid toll in Karnataka is a worrying sign for state government

Published

2 years ago

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May 4, 2022

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Even though Karnataka recorded the lowest number of Covid deaths in April since the virus struck first in 2020, the state is recording a rise in the positivity rate (1.50 per cent). Five people died from the Covid infections in April as per the statistics released by the state health department. In March, the positivity rate stood around 0.53 per cent. In the first week of April it came down to 0.38 per cent, second week registered 0.56 per cent, third week it rose to 0.79 per cent and by end of April the Covid positivity rate touched 1.19 per cent.

on an average 500 persons used to succumb everyday in the peak of Covid infection, as per the data. Health experts said that the mutated Coronavirus is losing its fierce characteristics as vaccination, better treatment facilities and awareness among the people have contributed to the lesser number of Covid deaths.

During the 4th and 6th of April two deaths were reported in Bengaluru, one in Gadag district on April 8, two deaths were reported from Belagavi and Vijayapura on April 30. The first Covid case was reported in the state in March 2020 and three Covid deaths were recorded in the month. In the following month 21 people became victims to the deadly virus, and May 2020 recorded 22 deaths. The death toll recorded everyday after May crossed three digits. However, the third wave, which started in January 2

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