Trial reportJournal of the International AIDS Society2025
Evaluation of point-of-care diagnostics for sexually transmitted infection on oral PrEP initiation and persistence among young people in South Africa: a randomized controlled study.
Trial report in Journal of the International AIDS Society, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Oral PrEP use among pregnant or parenting young women in South Africa: evidence from a large community-based implementation study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- International journal of sexual health : official journal of the World Association for Sexual Health · 2026Article
- "I wish someone else could notify the partner": barriers to STI partner notification identified and experienced by young women and health care workers in Cape Town, South Africa.Frontiers in reproductive health · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
Abstract
introductionPre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) services are linked to increased sexually transmitted infection (STI) diagnoses, which may facilitate PrEP uptake. We hypothesized that point-of-care (POC) STI testing and treatment would improve PrEP initiation and persistence.
methodsBetween September 2023 and November 2024, we conducted a single-centre, open-label, unblinded, randomized controlled trial among adolescent girls and young women (15-29 years old) or male partners (any age). Participants were randomized 1:1 to standard syndromic STI management (SOC) or POC testing for C. trachomatis, N. gonorrhoeae, syphilis and T. vaginalis (women only). All participants received standard HIV prevention counselling, including the offer of oral PrEP. The primary outcome was effect of POC STI testing versus syndromic management on PrEP initiation; secondary outcomes included persistence at 1 and 4 months (PrEP prescription), verified in the secondary analysis of tenofovir diphosphate (TFV-DP) in dried blood spots (DBS) in a random subset. TFV-DP in DBS was analysed in a subset. Analysis was intention-to-treat, adjusted for age and sex.
resultsWe enrolled and randomized 900 participants (452 in intervention; 448 in SOC). The mean age was 20.4 years (SD = 4.2); 48% were female. In the intervention arm, 435 received POC STI testing (96%); 25% (110 of 435 tested) were diagnosed with =>1 STIs; 84% were treated. In SOC, 7% of participants reported symptoms of STIs (31); 88% were treated (27). Overall, 64% of participants in SOC versus 62% in intervention-initiated PrEP (RR = 0.98, 95% CI = 0.88ng women and partners1.08). In the intervention, 41% persisted on PrEP at 1 month and 25% through 4 months, compared to 46% and 19%, respectively, in SOC (aRR intervention = 1.39; 95% CI = 0.93-2.09; p = 0.08). In participants treated for STIs or syndromically, 77% initiated PrEP versus 60% untreated/diagnosed (aRR = 1.14; 95% CI = 1.02-1.27); 19% versus 14% persisted on PrEP at 4 months (aRR STI/syndrome treated = 1.41; 95% CI = 0.79-2.51). Overall, 30% of 64 DBS had any TFV-DP levels present with no difference by study arm (RR = 0.74; 95% CI: 0.38-1.41).
conclusionsPOC STI testing did not increase PrEP initiation or 1-month persistence but showed a moderate association with 4-month persistence. STI treatment (syndromic or confirmed) was linked to higher PrEP uptake and persistence. Integrating STI management may improve PrEP persistence among youth.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.