Caregiver-assisted oral HIV testing of children in Uganda and Zambia

Highlighting the growing evidence base for caregiver-assisted HIV self-testing (HIVST), this brief notes a significant decline in new pediatric HIV infections due to improved prevention of mother-to-child transmission. However, challenges in HIV diagnosis hinder progress toward UNAIDS' 95-95-95 targets. While evidence suggests caregiver-assisted HIVST is a highly acceptable and accurate option to screen children, concerns remain regarding social harm. This brief cites recent studies demonstrating the safety of children with no history of violence at home. Policy recommendations include increasing access to HIVST through WHO prequalification of oral test kits; providing guidelines for safe disclosure; educating healthcare workers and caregivers on managing false positives and preventing the misuse and abuse of testing; and revisiting age-of-consent policies.