Point-of-Care Sexually Transmitted Infection Testing Improves HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis Initiation in Pregnant Women in Antenatal Care in Cape Town, South Africa, 2019 to 2021.

Abstract

A study of HIV-uninfected pregnant women in South Africa found that women offered point-of-care sexually transmitted infection testing had higher odds of initiating HIV preexposure prophylaxis than women offered laboratory-based testing.BackgroundPreexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) programs present a platform for diagnostic sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing in low- and middle-income countries, and availability of targeted STI testing has been hypothesized to influence PrEP use. We evaluated the association of STI testing modality and PrEP uptake among pregnant women in antenatal care.MethodsWe enrolled pregnant, HIV-uninfected women (16 years or older) at their first antenatal visit with follow-up through 12 months postpartum. Women were offered oral PrEP and tested forChlamydia trachomatisandNeisseria gonorrhoeaeusing a point-of-care (POC; Cepheid, August 2019–November 2020) or laboratory-based (Thermofisher, December 2020–October 2021) test. We compared the proportion of women initiating and continuing PrEP by STI test adjusting for confounders.ResultsWe evaluated 1194 women (median age, 26 years [interquartile range, 22–31 years]) with an STI result (46% POC and 54% laboratory-based). The prevalence of any STI was the same in POC-tested (28%) and laboratory-tested (28%) women—25% versus 23% forC. trachomatis(P= 0.35) and 7% versus 9% forN. gonorrhoeae(P= 0.11). Mean time from testing to result was 0 day for POC and 26 days for laboratory testing, and mean time from testing to treatment was 3 days for POC and 38 days for laboratory testing. Receiving a POC STI test was associated with higher PrEP initiation compared with women receiving a laboratory-based test (90% vs. 78%; adjusted odds ratio, 2.1; 95% confidence interval, 1.5–2.9), controlling for age, gravidity, STI diagnosis, intimate partner violence, gestational age, employment, HIV risk perception, and cohabiting status.ConclusionsPoint-of-care STI testing, offering same-day results and treatment initiation, may increase PrEP initiation among pregnant women in antenatal care.