Testing rate rises after posting of routine testing recommendations, rapid testing implementation
TUESDAY, Sept. 7 (HealthDay News) -- After the publication of national recommendations for routine HIV testing and the implementation of rapid testing, the rate of HIV testing among adolescents at an urban adolescent primary care clinic substantially increased, according to research published in the September issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Tanya L. Kowalczyk Mullins, M.D., of the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, and colleagues reviewed billing data on testing for sexually transmitted infections for 9,491 patients aged 13 to 22 years. Their objective was to determine whether testing for HIV increased after the 2006 publication of national recommendations for routine testing and after the introduction of rapid testing at their clinic in 2007.
The researchers found that the rate of HIV testing increased from 12.6 to 27.7 percent after publication of the routine testing recommendations, and that the rate went up again with the implementation of rapid HIV testing, increasing to 44.6 percent. Older age, male sex, race, public insurance status, and having a genitourinary-related diagnosis were each associated with HIV testing.
"The HIV testing rates increased significantly following publication of recommendations for routine testing, and further increased following introduction of rapid testing. Combining routine and rapid testing strategies may increase uptake of HIV testing among adolescents in primary care settings," the authors write.
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