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HIV Testing

Proven HIV Prevention Methods

There are more tools to effectively prevent HIV than ever before. Since no single strategy provides complete protection or is right for all individuals, a combination of methods is needed to help reduce HIV transmission. CDC and its partners are currently pursuing a High-Impact Prevention approach to reducing the continued toll of HIV. This approach seeks to use the best mix of proven, cost-effective, and scalable interventions for high-risk populations and areas of the nation (see "Future of HIV Prevention" fact sheet for information).

The Future of HIV Prevention

In the United States, it is estimated that prevention efforts have already averted more than 350,000 HIV infections. Since the height of the epidemic in the mid-1980s, the annual number of new HIV infections in the United States has been reduced by more than two-thirds, and recent scientific breakthroughs have equipped the United States with an unprecedented number of effective tools to prevent infection. CDC states that maximizing the impact of these tools within the framework of a new approach, called High-Impact Prevention, offers more hope than ever before for reversing the U.S.

MMWR: HIV Infection and Risk, Prevention, and Testing Behaviors Among Injecting Drug Users – National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System, 20 U.S. Cities, 2009

This report summarizes results from the second National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System (NHBS) data collection cycle among injecting drug users (IDUs) – NHBS-IDU2– which was conducted during June–December 2009. The report provides unweighted data that can be used to describe the prevalence of HIV infection among IDUs and the percentage of IDUs reporting specific risk behaviors, HIV testing, and participation in prevention programs.

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Healthcare Associates HIV Manual

This manual provides guidelines for treatment and health care maintenance of persons with HIV infection. It discusses testing and counseling, the initial evaluation of patients, initiating antiretroviral therapy, what drugs should be used, adverse reactions, and the issue of patient adherence to therapy. It also includes special considerations for treating pregnant women.

State HIV Prevention Progress Report, 2014

The State HIV Prevention Progress Report (SPR) provides state-level data that show how states are doing in relation to key national goals. The report monitors HIV outcomes at the state population level but does not specifically evaluate CDC-funded activities. For 3 indicators (HIV testing, late-stage diagnosis, and death rate), the report includes data on all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

MMWR: Routine HIV Screening in Two Health-Care Settings –New York City and New Orleans, 2011-2013

This report describes novel HIV screening programs at the Urban Health Plan (UHP), Inc. in New York City and the Interim Louisiana Hospital (ILH) emergency department in New Orleans. Both received startup funding from Gilead Sciences’ HIV on the Frontlines of Communities in the United States (FOCUS) program to implement routine HIV screening. Both programs identified previously undiagnosed HIV infections. Use of the new testing algorithm allowed the New Orleans program to identify antibody-negative acute infections in five (6%) of the 77 patients with newly diagnosed HIV.

Lifetime HIV Risk for African Americans: If Current Trend Continues

This poster, presented in jpg format, discusses the current trends in HIV incidence rates in African Americans. It states: "If the current trends continue, 1 in 16 African American men will be diagnosed with HIV in their lifetime," and "If the current trends continue, 1 in 32 African American women will be diagnosed with HIV in their lifetime." It encourages African Americans to get the facts, get tested, and get involved.

HIV Testing Among Adolescents: What Schools and Education Agencies Can Do

This information sheet discusses the need for HIV testing among adolescents. It explains why HIV testing is important for anyone and for adolescents in particular. The information sheet notes that adolescents and young adults engage in behaviors that put them at risk for HIV infection and provides statistics on the number of youth living with HIV and the estimated number of new infections among youth.