Assisted partner services for HIV in Kenya: a cluster randomised controlled trial

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Infectious Diseases
• Clinical Trials

Background:

• Assisted partner services (APS) involve identifying and notifying sex partners of individuals with HIV to encourage testing and care.
• APS are not widely implemented in Africa, despite their potential to improve HIV outcomes.
• This study evaluated the effectiveness of APS in Kenya.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if assisted partner services increase HIV testing, diagnoses, and linkage to care among sex partners of people diagnosed with HIV in Kenya.

Main Methods:

• A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted in 18 HIV testing clinics in Kenya.
• Clinics were randomized to immediate or delayed APS. Participants were adults with newly diagnosed HIV without recent intimate partner violence.
• Primary outcomes included partners tested, diagnosed with HIV, and enrolled in care at 6-week follow-up.

Main Results:

• 67% of partners were tested in the immediate APS group versus 13% in the delayed group.
• New HIV diagnoses were identified in 23% of partners in the immediate group compared to 4% in the delayed group.
• 15% of partners were newly enrolled in care with immediate APS versus 3% with delayed APS. No increase in intimate partner violence was observed.

Conclusions:

• Assisted partner services are safe and effective in increasing HIV testing, diagnosis, and linkage to care.
• Population-level implementation of APS can reduce HIV transmission by improving care initiation and antiretroviral therapy uptake.