ArticleBMC infectious diseases2022
Usability and acceptability of oral fluid hepatitis C self-testing among people who inject drugs in Coastal Kenya: a cross-sectional pilot study.
Article in BMC infectious diseases, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 15 citations in OpenAlex.
- Acceptability and Effectiveness of Point-of-Care HCV Testing in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review.Liver international : official journal of the International Association for the Study of the Liver · 2026Pooled it
- Comparative Impact of Active Versus Passive Surveillance on Hepatitis C Virus Testing Uptake, Diagnosis and Linkage to Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Tropical medicine & international health : TM & IH · 2026Pooled it
- Feasibility and acceptability of hepatitis C virus self-testing models among high-risk groups in Nasarawa, Nigeria; Exploratory cross-sectional analysis of an implementation study.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Usability and acceptability of self-testing for hepatitis C virus exposure in a high-prevalence urban informal settlement in Karachi, Pakistan.BMC infectious diseases · 2024Article
- Health, harm reduction, and social service providers' perspectives on the appropriateness and feasibility of peer distribution of HIV self-test kits among people who use drugs.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- Willingness to use and distribute HIV self-testing kits among people who inject drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana border region.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- Usability and acceptability of oral fluid- and blood-based hepatitis C virus self-testing among the general population and men who have sex with men in Malaysia.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- HIV sero-status of healthcare workers in Addis Ababa public hospitals post exposure to infected blood and body fluids: A cross-sectional study, October 2022.Epidemiology and infection · 2023Article
- Need for integration of hepatitis C (HCV) services in community-based settings for people who inject drugs: results from a global values and preferences survey.Harm reduction journal · 2023Article
- HIV Sero-Status of Health Care Workers in Addis Ababa Public Hospitals After Post-Exposure Blood and Body Fluids: A Cross-Sectional Study, October 2022.Clinical medicine insights. Case reports · 2023Article
- Usability and acceptability of oral-based HCV self-testing among key populations: a mixed-methods evaluation in Tbilisi, Georgia.BMC infectious diseases · 2022Observational
- HCV Self-Testing to Expand Testing: A Pilot Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in China.Frontiers in public health · 2022Observational
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPeople who inject drugs (PWID) are disproportionally affected by hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and many remain undiagnosed. HCV self-testing (HCVST) may be an effective approach to increase testing uptake, but has rarely been used among PWID. We assessed the usability and acceptability of HCVST among PWID in Kenya.
methodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study nested within a cohort study between August and December 2020 on Kenya's North Coast region. Participants were handed a prototype oral fluid HCVST kit and asked to conduct the test relying on the instructions for use. Usability was assessed by documenting errors made and difficulties faced by participants. Acceptability was assessed using an interviewer-administered semi-structured questionnaire.
resultsAmong 150 participants, 19% were female and 65.3% had primary level education or lower. 71.3% made at least one error, 56.7% experienced some difficulty during at least one step, and the majority of participants (78%) required assistance during at least one step of the procedure. Most common errors occurred when placing the tube into the stand (18%), collecting the oral fluid sample (24%) and timing of reading results (53%). There was a strong association between presence of symptoms of opiate withdrawals and observed errors (94% vs 62%; p = 0.016) in a sub-group of 74 participants assessed. Inter-reader and inter-operator concordance were 97.7% (kappa: 0.92) and 99.2% (kappa: 0.95), respectively. Acceptability assessed by asking whether participants would choose to use HCVST prior to and after conducting HCVST was 98% and 95%, respectively.
conclusionsWe found a high acceptability of oral fluid HCVST among PWID. User errors were common and were associated with the presence of withdrawal symptoms among users. Despite errors, most participants were able to obtain and interpret results correctly. These findings suggest that this group of users may benefit from greater messaging and education including options to receive direct assistance when self-testing for HCV.
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