Disclosure of HSV-2 serological test results in the context of an adolescent HIV prevention trial in Kenya.

Objectives: Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) biomarkers are often used in adolescent sub-Saharan HIV prevention studies, but evaluations of test performance and disclosure outcomes are rare in the published literature. Therefore, we investigated the proportion of ELISA-positive and indeterminate samples confirmed by western blot (WB), the psychosocial response to disclosure and whether reports of sexual behaviour and HSV-2 symptoms are consistent with WB confirmatory results among adolescent orphans in Kenya.

Methods: In 2011, 837 Kenyan orphan youth in grades 7 and 8 enrolled in an HIV prevention clinical trial with HSV-2 biomarker outcomes.