Last week, a national study led by NGO PATH revealed that the acceptability and feasibility of self-testing kits to identify HIV got a massive thumbs up from the communities in India. Several experts believe that it could transform testing for the virus and significantly increase the number of people who know their HIV status.

The study enrolled 93,500 participants, out of which nearly 68% of participants were men, 27% were women, and 5% were transgender, from 50 districts across 14 high HIV prevalence states. The study results showed that the overall acceptability for self-testing kits was 88%, while it was as high as 97% in certain sections of the population. Also, 95% of the users found it easy to use and interpret the results, while on the other hand, 70% of the participants stated that they were willing to pay for the test.

Dr. Asha Hegde, deputy director of operations-HIV-TB at Ngo PATH, stated that in self-testing, a person collects his or her saliva or blood samples, and then, using a rapid test kit, performs an HIV test. The results are available in 20 minutes, allowing one to take the test easily within the comforts of their home or any other location.

The study also revealed that the self-testing kits picked up close to 340 cases, registering a positivity rate of 0.4%. On the other hand, 88% of 340 cases were then linked to an antiretroviral treatment (ART) center, which is a crucial step given that after diagnosis, individuals should also be willing to get treated. Similarly, 90% of participants who tested positive were willing to share their findings, while only 1.4% of participants reported feeling anxious about the results. Only one individual reported suicidal tendencies.