Browsing by Author "James, Anelet"

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    Effect of Universal Testing and Treatment on HIV Incidence — HPTN 071 (PopART)
    (Massachusetts Medical Society, 2019-07) Hayes, Richard J.; Donnell, Deborah; Floyd, Sian; Mandla, Nomtha; Bwalya, Justin; Sabapathy, Kalpana; Yang, Blia; Phiri, Mwelwa; Schaap, Ab; Eshleman, Susan H.; Piwowar-Manning, Estelle; Kosloff, Barry; James, Anelet; Skalland, Timothy; Wilson, Ethan; Emel, Lynda; Macleod, David; Dunbar, Rory; Simwinga, Musonda; Makola, Nozizwe; Bond, Virginia; Moore, Ayana; Griffith, Sam; Sista, Nirupama Deshmane; Vermund, Sten H.; El-Sadr, Wafaa; Burns, David N.; Hargreaves, James R.; Hauck, Katharina; Fraser, Christophe; Shanaube, Kwame; Bock, Peter; Beyers, Nulda; Ayles, Helen; Fidler, Sarah
    BACKGROUND: A universal testing and treatment strategy is a potential approach to reduce the incidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, yet previous trial results are inconsistent. METHODS: In the HPTN 071 (PopART) community-randomized trial conducted from 2013 through 2018, we randomly assigned 21 communities in Zambia and South Africa (total population, approximately 1 million) to group A (combination prevention intervention with universal antiretroviral therapy [ART]), group B (the prevention intervention with ART provided according to local guidelines [universal since 2016]), or group C (standard care). The prevention intervention included home-based HIV testing delivered by community workers, who also supported linkage to HIV care and ART adherence. The primary outcome, HIV incidence between months 12 and 36, was measured in a population cohort of approximately 2000 randomly sampled adults (18 to 44 years of age) per community. Viral suppression (<400 copies of HIV RNA per milliliter) was assessed in all HIV-positive participants at 24 months. RESULTS: The population cohort included 48,301 participants. Baseline HIV prevalence was 21% or 22% in each group. Between months 12 and 36, a total of 553 new HIV infections were observed during 39,702 person-years (1.4 per 100 person-years; women, 1.7; men, 0.8). The adjusted rate ratio for group A as compared with group C was 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.74 to 1.18; P=0.51) and for group B as compared with group C was 0.70 (95% CI, 0.55 to 0.88; P=0.006). The percentage of HIV-positive participants with viral suppression at 24 months was 71.9% in group A, 67.5% in group B, and 60.2% in group C. The estimated percentage of HIV-positive adults in the community who were receiving ART at 36 months was 81% in group A and 80% in group B. CONCLUSIONS: A combination prevention intervention with ART provided according to local guidelines resulted in a 30% lower incidence of HIV infection than standard care. The lack of effect with universal ART was unanticipated and not consistent with the data on viral suppression. In this trial setting, universal testing and treatment reduced the population-level incidence of HIV infection. (Funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and others; HPTN 071 [PopArt] ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01900977. opens in new tab.)
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    Precision of the Kalon Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 IgG ELISA : an international inter-laboratory assessment
    (BioMed Central, 2015-09-30) Patel, Eshan U.; Manucci, Jordyn; Kahle, Erin M.; Lingappa, Jairam R.; Morrow, Rhoda Ashley; Piwowar-Manning, Estelle; James, Anelet; Maluzi, Kwitaka F.; Cheeba, Maina M.; Gray, Glenda; Delany-Moretlwe, Sinead; Inambao, Mubiana; Vwalika, Bellington; Quinn, Thomas C.; Laeyendecker, Oliver
    Background: The commercial Kalon HSV-2 IgG ELISA is currently recommended for research use in sub-Saharan Africa because of its superior accuracy compared to other serologic assays. However, there are no data on key precision parameters of Kalon such as inter-operator variation, repeatability, and reproducibility, thus contributing to a barrier for its acceptance and use in clinical trials in sub-Saharan Africa. We evaluated the analytical and field precision of the Kalon HSV-2 IgG ELISA. Methods: A total of 600 HIV-infected and uninfected serum samples from South Africa and Zambia, previously tested by the gold standard University of Washington HSV western blot (UW-WB), were tested using Kalon by two technologists in an United States reference laboratory. Aliquots of 183 samples were retested using Kalon by an on-site technologist in a South African laboratory and a Zambian laboratory. Results: Intra-assay variation was below 10 %. Intra-assay, intra-laboratory, and inter-laboratory correlation and agreement were significantly high (p < 0.01). In comparison to the UW-WB, accurate performance of Kalon was reproducible by each operator and laboratory. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated high selectivity of Kalon in the overall study population (area under the curve = 0.95, 95%CI = 0.92–0.97). Discussion: Kalon is a robust assay with high precision and reproducibility. Accordingly, operator errorlikely does not contribute to the variability observed in Kalon’s specificity throughout sera from sub-Saharan Africa. Conclusions: In populations with optimal diagnostic accuracy, Kalon is a reliable stand-alone method for on-site HSV-2 IgG antibody detection.
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    Removing mental health barriers to education : a community project
    (AOSIS, 2018) Schoeman, Renata; Enright, Jena; James, Anelet; Vermeulen, Cornelia; De Beer, Nic
    Introduction: Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most common psychiatric disorder in children – affecting 2% to 16% of the school-age population (National Resource Centre on AD/HD, 2013). However, in South Africa, data on prevalence rates, access to care and treatment for ADHD are limited and research is lacking. Many children- especially those in underprivileged communities- suffering from ADHD remain undiagnosed, or if diagnosed, do not receive optimal treatment. The Goldilocks and The Bear Foundation provides screening for ADHD and other mental health disorders to learners at school level. We will be presenting the statistics compiled for the first year of operation (July 2017 – June 2018). Methods: In the schools visited, children are referred to the Foundation by the School Based Support. Collateral information is obtained from educators and parents, and parental consent secured before any child is evaluated. Trained nurses do the basic physical screening and behavioural observations for each child. All information is collated and controlled by a trained psychiatrist or psychologist, who determine the possible diagnosis and refer accordingly (either to the community clinic, school doctor, optometrists, audiologists, educational psychologist or occupational psychologist). A detailed database was built capturing all the aforementioned information. Results: We have visited 18 schools (N = 12 447), of which 13 schools participated (N = 8780). A total of 543 children (6.2%) from the school population were screened. The ratio of boys to girls was 2:1, with an age range of 5–14 years. Of the children included in the current analysis (to be updated at the end of the study period), 2.7% were diagnosed with ADHD and 0.67% with depression and/or anxiety. Further detail will be provided with regard to risk factors and comorbid conditions and problem areas. Conclusion: Although mental health clinics exist in the public sector, children with ADHD often never reach this point of diagnosis and treatment because of a lack of awareness and knowledge in their communities. Improved outcomes are possible to achieve if patients suffering from ADHD are diagnosed as such and receive multi-modal intervention – which would include psychopharmacological interventions, behavioural interventions and support.
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    Understanding low sensitivity of community-based HIV rapid testing : experiences from the HPTN 071 (PopART) trial in Zambia and South Africa
    (Wiley Open Access, 2017-08-27) Bock, Peter; Phiri, Comfort; Piwowar-Manning, Estelle; Kosloff, Barry; Mandla, Nomtha; Young, Alicia; James, Anelet; Schaap, A. b.; Scheepers, Michelle; Donnell, Deborah; Griffith, Sam; El-Sadr, Wafaa; Shanaube, Kwame; Beyers, Nulda; Hayes, Richard; Fidler, Sarah; Ayles, Helen
    Introduction: Population-wide HIV testing services (HTS) must be delivered in order to achieve universal antiretroviral treatment (ART) coverage. To accurately deliver HTS at such scale, non-facility-based HIV point-of-care testing (HIV-POCT) is necessary but requires rigorous quality assurance (QA). This study assessed the performance of community-wide HTS in Zambia and South Africa (SA) as part of the HPTN 071 (PopART) study and explores the impact of quality improvement interventions on HTS performance. Methods: Between 2014 and 2016, HIV-POCT was undertaken within households both as part of the randomly selected HPTN 071 research cohort (Population Cohort [PC]) and as part of the intervention provided by community HIV-care providers. HIVPOCT followed national algorithms in both countries. Consenting PC participants provided a venous blood sample in addition to being offered HIV-POCT. We compared results obtained in the PC using a laboratory-based gold standard (GS) testing algorithm and HIV-POCT. Comprehensive QA mechanisms were put in place to support the community-wide testing. Participants who were identified as having a false negative or false positive HIV rapid test were revisited and offered retesting. Results: We initially observed poor sensitivity (45–54%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 31–69) of HIV-POCT in the PC in SA compared to sensitivity in Zambia for the same time period of 95.8% (95% CI 93–98). In both countries, specificity of HIVPOCT was >98%. With enhanced QA interventions and adoption of the same HIV-POCT algorithm, sensitivity in SA improved to a similar level as in Zambia. Conclusions: This is one of the first reports of HIV-POCT performance during wide-scale delivery of HTS compared to a GS laboratory algorithm. HIV-POCT in a real-world setting had a lower sensitivity than anticipated. Appropriate choice of HIVPOCT algorithms, intensive training and supervision, and robust QA mechanisms are necessary to optimize HIV-POCT test performance when testing is delivered at a community level. HIV-POCT in clients who did not disclose that they were on ART may have contributed to false negative HIV-POCT results and should be the topic of future research.