Importance: The National HIV Strategic Plan for the US recommends HIV screening in emergency departments (EDs). The most effective approach to ED-based HIV screening remains unknown.
Objective: To compare strategies for HIV screening when integrated into usual ED practice.
Routine screening is recommended for HIV detection. HIV risk estimation remains important. Our goal was to validate the Denver HIV Risk Score using a national cohort from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExpansions in health care coverage, a comprehensive framework for HIV prevention and care, electronic medical records, and novel HIV prevention modalities create a current opportunity to change the trajectory of the HIV epidemic in the United States. HIV is increasingly disproportionately found in populations historically at higher risk, including gay men and other men who have sex with men, transgender women, injection drug users, and persons of color. This underscores the need for providers to identify persons at higher risk for HIV and assure the provision of screening and prevention services.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends nontargeted opt-out HIV screening in healthcare settings. Cost effectiveness is critical when considering potential screening methods. Our goal was to compare programmatic costs of nontargeted opt-out rapid HIV screening with physician-directed diagnostic rapid HIV testing in an urban emergency department (ED) as part of the Denver ED HIV Opt-Out Trial.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis is a retrospective cohort study of 352 newly diagnosed HIV-infected individuals in Denver, from 2005 to 2007. Utilizing data from 3 health care systems, 2 clinical trials units, and statewide Colorado HIV laboratory reporting databases, we tracked initial linkage to HIV care, retention in care, loss to follow-up, and transitions between HIV care providers. After more than 2.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAs part of the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Denver, Colorado, we assessed knowledge of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); willingness to use PrEP; and potential changes in risk behaviors among HIV-negative participants reporting sexual activity with a male partner in the preceding 12 months. We examined knowledge of PrEP before (2008) and after (2011) results of the iPrEx trial were available. Of the 425 participants in the 2008 sample, 91 (21 %) were aware of PrEP compared to 131 (28 %) of the 461 participants in the 2011 sample (adjusted prevalence ratio: 1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStudy Objective: A clinical prediction tool, the Denver HIV Risk Score, was recently developed to help identify patients with increased probability of undiagnosed HIV infection. Our goal was to compare targeted rapid HIV screening using the Denver HIV Risk Score to nontargeted rapid HIV screening in an urban emergency department (ED) and urgent care.
Methods: We used a prospective, before-after design at an urban medical center with an approximate annual census of 110,000 visits.
Context: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends routine (nontargeted) opt-out HIV screening in health care settings, including emergency departments (EDs), where the prevalence of undiagnosed infection is 0.1% or greater. The utility of this approach in EDs remains unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) continues to expand in nontraditional risk groups, and the prevalence of undiagnosed infection remains relatively high in the patient populations of urban emergency departments (EDs). Unfortunately, HIV testing in this setting remains uncommon. The objectives of this study were 1) to develop a physician-based diagnostic rapid HIV testing model, 2) to implement this model in a high-volume urban ED, and 3) to prospectively characterize the patients who were targeted by physicians for testing and determine the proportions who completed rapid HIV counseling, testing, and referral; tested positive for HIV infection; and were successfully linked into medical and preventative care.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To evaluate opportunities for earlier human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) diagnosis within a comprehensive public health care system.
Study Design: Retrospective review of newly diagnosed HIV-infected patients between September 2001 and December 2003.
Results: One hundred twenty of 348 (34%) newly diagnosed HIV-infected patients had medical care within our system in the 3 years before diagnosis.