Effectiveness of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Index Testing: A Global Scoping Review

Authors

  • Abhiruchi Galhotra Department of Community and Family Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India
  • Sanjana Agrawal Independent Public Health Researcher, Raigarh, Chhattisgarh, India
  • Aditi Chandrakar Department of Community and Family Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25259/IJMA_4_2025

Keywords:

  • Contact Tracing,
  • Human Immunodeficiency Virus,
  • HIV Testing,
  • Index Case Testing,
  • Linkage to Care

Abstract

Background and Objective:

Over 2.5 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in India. The World Health Organization recommends HIV self-screening and partner notification services. Index testing is a case-finding approach that focuses on eliciting the sexual or needle-sharing partners and biological children of HIV-positive individuals. This review aims to understand the effectiveness of index case testing in the uptake of HIV diagnosis and care.

Methods:

A scoping review was conducted to examine the effectiveness of HIV index case testing. Studies published between 2010 and 2024 in English were included. A total of 10 final studies were included in this scoping review. No such studies were found in the Indian context.

Results:

The studies were from Zimbabwe, Malawi, Nigeria, South Africa, Lesotho, Kenya, Zambia, Mozambique, and Ukraine. Sample sizes ranged from under 1,000 individuals to large-scale community-based programs enrolling over 38,000 participants. The studies demonstrated the effectiveness of index case testing in identifying previously undiagnosed HIV infections among sexual partners (up to 51%) and children (4.0–5.8%) of people living with HIV. The studies also indicated high acceptance rates and feasibility of the approach.

Conclusion and Global Health Implications:

HIV index case testing presents a valuable strategy for reaching diverse populations at risk for HIV infection and improving care linkages. Further research is needed to explore cost-effectiveness and optimize implementation strategies for various contexts.

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Published

2025-08-07
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How to Cite

Galhotra, A., Agrawal, S., & Chandrakar, A. (2025). Effectiveness of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Index Testing: A Global Scoping Review. International Journal of Maternal and Child Health and AIDS, 14(Continuous), e016. https://doi.org/10.25259/IJMA_4_2025

License


Copyright © 2025 Abhiruchi Galhotra, Sanjana Agrawal, Aditi Chandrakar. Published by Global Health and Education Projects, Inc., USA.

Creative Commons License

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , which permits others to remix, transform, and build upon the work non-commercially, provided the original author is credited and the new creations are licensed under the same terms.