Preferences for oral-vs blood-based human immunodeficiency virus self-testing:A scoping review of the literature

BACKGROUND The evidence on preferences for oral-vs blood-based human immunodeficiency virus self-testing(HIVST)has been heterogenous and inconclusive.In addition,most evaluations have relied on hypothetical or stated use cases using discreet choice experiments rather than actual preferences among experienced users,which are more objective and critical for the understanding of product uptake.Direct head-to-head comparison of consumer preferences for oral-versus bloodbased HIVST is lacking.AIM To examine the existing literature on preferences for oral-vs blood-based HIVST,determine the factors that impact these preferences,and assess the potential implications for HIVST programs.METHODS Databases such as PubMed,Medline,Google Scholar,and Web of Science were searched for articles published between January 2011 to October 2022.Articles must address preferences for oral-vs blood-based HIVST.The study used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses checklist to ensure the quality of the study.RESULTS The initial search revealed 2424 records,of which 8 studies were finally included in the scoping review.Pooled preference for blood-based HIVST was 48.8%(9%-78.6%),whereas pooled preference for oral HIVST was 59.8%(34.2%-91%)across all studies.However,for male-specific studies,the preference for blood-based HIVST(58%-65.6%)was higher than that for oral(34.2%-41%).The four studies that reported a higher preference for blood-based HIVST were in men.Participants considered blood-based HIVST to be more accurate and rapid,while those with a higher preference for oral HIVST did so because these were considered non-invasive and easy to use.CONCLUSION Consistently in the literature,men preferred blood-based HIVST over oral HIVST due to higher risk perception and desire for a test that provides higher accuracy coupled with rapidity,autonomy,privacy,and confidentiality,whereas those with a higher preference for oral HIVST did so because these were considered non-invasive and easy to use.Misinformation and distrust need to be addressed through promotional messaging to maximize the diversity of this new biomedical technology.

Acceptability and strategies for enhancing uptake of human immunodeficiency virus self-testing in Nigeria

BACKGROUND In 2019,the Nigerian Ministry of Health published the first operational guidelines for human immunodeficiency virus self-testing(HIVST)to improve access to human immunodeficiency virus(HIV)testing services among undertested populations in the country.Also,as part of the campaign to increase HIV testing services in Nigeria,the Nigerian Ministry of Health developed standard operating procedures for using HIVST kits.AIM To systematically review the acceptability and strategies for enhancing the uptake of HIVST in Nigeria.METHODS The systematic review was conducted and reported in line with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.Different databases were searched to get the necessary materials needed for this review.Standardized forms developed by the authors were used for data extraction to minimize the risk of bias and ensure that the articles used for the study were properly screened.Identified articles were first screened using the titles and their abstracts.The full papers were screened,and the similarities of the documents were determined.Qualitative,quantitative,and mixed-method studies were evaluated using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme and Critical Appraisal Framework criteria.RESULTS All the publications reviewed were published between 2015 and 2022,with 33.3%published in 2021.Most(77.8%)of the studies were cross-sectional,43.3%were conducted in Lagos State,and 26.3%were conducted among young people.The study revealed a high level of acceptability of HIVST.Certain factors,such as gender,sexual activity,and previous testing experience,influence the acceptability of HIV self-testing,with some individuals more likely to opt-out.The cost of the kit was reported as the strongest factor for choosing HIVST services,and this ranged from 200 to 4000 Naira(approximately United States Dollar 0.55-11.07),with the majority willing to pay 500 Naira(approximately United States Dollar 1.38).Privately-owned,registered pharmacies,youthfriendly centres,supermarkets,and online stores were the most cited access locations for HIVST.The least influential attribute was the type of specimen needed for HIVST.Strategies addressing cost and preferred access points and diverse needs for social media promotion,local translation of product use instructions,and HIVST distribution led by key opinion leaders for key populations were found to significantly enhance HIVST uptake and linkage to care.CONCLUSION HIVST acceptability is generally high from an intention-to-use perspective.Targeted strategies are required to improve the acceptability of HIV self-testing,especially among males,sexually active individuals,and first-time testers.Identified and proposed uptake-enhancing strategies need to be investigated in controlled settings and among different populations and distribution models in Nigeria.

Uptake of HIV Self-testing among Men Who have Sex with Men in Beijing, China： a Cross-sectional Study

Objective To examine HIV self-testing uptake and its determinates among men who have sex with men （MSM） in Beijing, China. Methods A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in Beijing, China in 2016. Participants were users of a popular Chinese gay networking application and had an unknown or negative HIV status. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine factors associated with HIV self-testing based on adjusted odds ratio （AOR） and 95% confidence interval （CI）. Results Among the 5,996 MSM included in the study, 2,383 （39.7%） reported to have used HIV self-testing kits. Willingness to use an HIV self-test kit in the future was expressed by 92% of the participants. High monthly income （AOR = 1.49; CI = 1.10-2.02; P = 0.010）, large number of male sex partners （≥2： AOR = 1.24; CI = 2.09-1.43; P = 0.002）, sexual activity with commercial male sex partners （〉 2： AOR = 1.94; CI = 1.34 -2.82; P = 0.001）, long-term drug use （AOR = 1.42; CI = 1.23-1.62; P 〈 0.001）, and long-term HIV voluntary counseling and testing （VCT） attendance （AOR = 3.62; CI = 3.11-4.22; P 〈 0.001） were all associated with increased odds of HIV self-testing uptake. Conclusion The nearly 40% rate of HIV self-testing uptake among MSM in our sample was high. In addition, an over 90% willingness to use kits in the future was encouraging. HIV self-testing could be an important solution to help China achieve the global target of having 90% of all people living with HIV diagnosed by 2020.

An Adaptive Ramp Generator for ADC Built-in Self-Test

An adaptive ramp generator based on linear histogram was proposed for the built-in selftest (BIST) of analog to digital convertor (ADC) in CMOS image sensor. By comparing the generated ramp signal to a reference voltage and feeding back a calibration signal, the slope adjustment was implemented, and high linearity and precision of ramp slope were realized. By modulating the pulse width and reference voltage, sweep length varied from microsecond to second and signal swing could reach 3 V with 5.6 mW power consumption. The ramp was used as input to an ideal 10-bit single-slope ADC, and the corresponding DNL and INL were 0.032 LSB and 0.078 LSB, re-spectively.

Robustness self-testing of states and measurements in the prepare-and-measure scenario with 3 → 1 random access code

Recently, Tavakoli et al.proposed a self-testing scheme in the prepare-and-measure scenario, showing that self-testing is not necessarily based on entanglement and violation of a Bell inequality [Phys.Rev.A 98 062307(2018)].They realized the self-testing of preparations and measurements in an N → 1(N ≥ 2) random access code(RAC), and provided robustness bounds in a 2 → 1 RAC.Since all N → 1 RACs with shared randomness are combinations of 2 → 1 and 3 → 1 RACs, the3 → 1 RAC is just as important as the 2 → 1 RAC.In this paper, we find a set of preparations and measurements in the3 → 1 RAC, and use them to complete the robustness self-testing analysis in the prepare-and-measure scenario.The method is robust to small but inevitable experimental errors.

Efficient self-testing system for quantum computations based on permutations

Verification in quantum computations is crucial since quantum systems are extremely vulnerable to the environment.However,verifying directly the output of a quantum computation is difficult since we know that efficiently simulating a large-scale quantum computation on a classical computer is usually thought to be impossible.To overcome this difficulty,we propose a self-testing system for quantum computations,which can be used to verify if a quantum computation is performed correctly by itself.Our basic idea is using some extra ancilla qubits to test the output of the computation.We design two kinds of permutation circuits into the original quantum circuit:one is applied on the ancilla qubits whose output indicates the testing information,the other is applied on all qubits(including ancilla qubits) which is aiming to uniformly permute the positions of all qubits.We show that both permutation circuits are easy to achieve.By this way,we prove that any quantum computation has an efficient self-testing system.In the end,we also discuss the relation between our self-testing system and interactive proof systems,and show that the two systems are equivalent if the verifier is allowed to have some quantum capacity.

Feasibility of a finger prick-based self-testing kit in first- and second-degree relatives of children with coeliac disease

AIM:To assess feasibility of a finger prick-based kit as method for self-testing of first and second-degree relatives of coeliac disease (CD) patients. METHODS:A total number of 379 subjects were invited to participate in this study,consisting of 197 first- degree and 182 second-degree relatives of CD patients. The self-testing kit (BiocardTM) was sent out with included instructions for use. Completed tests were sent back to the study coordinator for assessment. RESULTS:One hundred and ninety-six invited relatives carried out the BiocardTM test at home. Amongst these,70% were children. In 97% of the cases the test was performed correctly. Three tests revealed a positive result,all of which were later confirmed by serology and histology as coeliac disease.CONCLUSION:Our study indicates that BiocardTM test is a reliable,easy to use and well-accepted tool for home testing of first- and second-degree relatives of CD patients.

Assessing the Acceptability and Willingness to Use HIV Self-Testing among Student Nurses in a Private Nursing College, Gauteng Province, South Africa

Globally, there is increasing evidence that HIV self-testing (HIVST) is commonly practiced among health care workers (HCWs). Although HIVST kits are available in South Africa, their distribution and use remain unregulated and its acceptability, undocumented. The aim of the study was to explore the acceptability of HIV self-testing among student nurses, examine their willingness to use self-testing, and evaluate their views on the implementation of a regulated HIV self-testing programme. This was a qualitative explorative study, and six focus group discussions were conducted with 67 student nurses recruited from a private nursing college, in Pretoria, South Africa. Thematic analysis and NVivo10 qualitative software were used for data analysis. The nurses perceived HIVST as an acceptable option for HIV testing and most were willing to self-test. Self-testing will provide confidential and accessible HIV testing services, reduce the stigma associated with the condition, and increase partner testing and disclosure. HIVST is more likely to be practised if self-testing kits are easily accessible and affordable, and there are strategies to educate people before the adoption of HIVST. The lack of pre- and post-test counselling, the risk of inaccurate test results, and lack of strategies for the confirmation of self-testing results were the main arguments against HIVST. The high acceptance of HIVST among nurses suggests that HIVST is a feasible option to increase the uptake of HIV-testing among HCWs. However, pre- and post-test counselling should be considered important components in the implementation of self-testing services. Educational and awareness campaigns should precede the roll-out of the self-testing programs.

Phase-Coding Self-Testing Quantum Random Number Generator

How to estimate the randomness of the measurement outcomes generated by a given device is an important issue in quantum information theory. Recently, Brunner et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 112 （2014）140407] proposed a prepare-and-measure quantum random number generation scenario with device-independent assumption, which indicates a method to test the randomness of bit strings according to the generation process rather than the results. Based on this protocol, we implement a quantum random number generator with an intrinsic stable phase-encoded quantum key distribution system. The system has been continuously running for more than 200 h, a stable witness W with the average value of 0.9752 and a standard deviation of 0.0024 are obtained. More than 1 G random bits are generated and the results pass all items of NIST test suite.

HIV Self-Testing Kits Uptake in Mashonaland West Province, Zimbabwe, 2019-2020: A Secondary Data Analysis

Background: Human Immuno-Deficiency Virus Self-Testing (HIVST) is a process where an individual who wants to know their HIV status collects a specimen, performs a test and interprets the result by themselves. HIVST data from the Zimbabwe AIDS and TB Program (ATP) directorate showed that between 2019-2020, only 31% of the target HIVST kits were distributed in the country. Mashonaland West Province was one of the least performing provinces in meeting targets for HIVST kits distribution. Gaps in the implementation of the HIVST in the province ultimately affect the nationwide scaleup of targeted testing, a key enabler in achieving HIV epidemic control. We analyzed HIVST trends in Mashonaland West Province to inform HIV testing services programming. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study using HIVST secondary data obtained from the District Health Information Software 2 (DHIS2) electronic database. We conducted regression analysis for trends using Epi Info 7.2 and tables, bar graphs, pie charts and linear graphs were used for data presentation. Results: A total of 31,070 clients accessed HIVST kits in Mashonaland West Province from 2019-2020. A slightly higher proportion (50.4% and 51.7%) of females as compared to males accessed HIVST kits in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Overall, an increase in the trend of HIVST kits uptake was recorded (males R2 = 0.3945, p-value = 0.003 and females R2 = 0.4739, p-value = 0.001). There was generally a decline in the trend of community-based distribution of HIVST kits from the third quarter of 2019 throughout 2020 (R2 = 0.2441, p-value = 0.006). Primary distribution of HIVST kits remained the dominant method of distribution, constituting more than half of the kits distributed in both 2019 (67%) and 2020 (86%). Conclusion: Mashonaland West Province was mainly utilising facility-based distribution model for HIVST over the community-based distribution model. We recommended training more community-based distribution agents to increase community distribution of HIVST kits.

Evolving market-shaping strategies to boost access to essential medical products in developing countries with HIV self-testing as a case study

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated health inequities among countries in the Global South with limited access to essential medical products,leading to a higher infection and mortality rate,especially among vulnerable populations.Despite tremendous progress in global health financing,the estimated annual financing gap in developing countries is projected to reach US$371 billion per year by 2030.Therefore,developing market-shaping strategies is of great importance in ensuring adequate supply,affordable prices,and equitable access to essential medical products in low-and middle-income countries.We propose a strategic and appropriate market-shaping intervention framework for governments,international organizations,and NGOs to maximize access to essential medical products in developing countries.In the health field,we believe that market shaping strategy could be defined as a set of purposeful activities that market forces may intervene with to advance the development,production,supply,and distribution of global goods for health,making essential medical products more affordable,accessible,innovative,sustainable and quality assured.We argue that when designing a market-shaping strategy,policy or decisionmakers must take full advantage of the key drivers to keep the market dynamic,interactive,and constantly evolving to meet the unmet medical needs.In addition,different forms of market-shaping interventions are determined by objectives and specific issues to be addressed.More comprehensive market shaping strategies,including the strategic use of market expansion,market disruption,market maintenance,and market contraction alone or together,deserve to be explored and key stakeholders are also expected to join forces to make the intervention more efficient and productive.

Multicenter evaluation of a simple and sensitive nucleic acid self-testing for SARS-CoV-2

A rapid and accurate COVID-19 diagnosis is a prerequisite for blocking the source of infection as soon as possible and taking the appropriate medical action.Herein,we developed GeneClick,a device for nucleic acid self-testing of SARS-CoV-2,consisting of three modules:a sampling kit,a microfluidic chip-based disposable cartridge,and an amplification reader.In addition,we evaluated the clinical performance of GeneClick using 2162 nasal swabs collected at three medical institutions,using three commercial RT-qPCR kits and an antigen self-test as references.Compared to RT-qPCR,the sensitivity and specificity of the GeneClick assay were 97.93%and 99.72%,respectively,with a kappa value of 0.979(P<0.01).Of the 2162 samples,2076 were also tested for SARS-CoV-2 antigens.Among the 314 positive samples identified by GeneClick assay,63 samples were undetected by antigen tests.Overall,the GeneClick nucleic acid self-test demonstrated higher accuracy than the antigen-based detection.Based on the additional features,including simple operation,affordable price,portable device,and reliability of smartphone APP-driven sampling and result reporting,GeneClick offers a powerful tool for field-based SARS-CoV-2 detection in primary healthcare institutions or at-home use.

Parallel Software-Based Self-Testing with Bounded Model Checking for Kilo-Core Networks-on-Chip

Online testing is critical to ensuring reliable operations of the next generation of supercomputers based on a kilo-core network-on-chip(NoC)interconnection fabric.We present a parallel software-based self-testing(SBST)solution that makes use of the bounded model checking(BMC)technique to generate test sequences and parallel packets.In this method,the parallel SBST with BMC derives the leading sequence for each router’s internal function and detects all functionally-testable faults related to the function.A Monte-Carlo simulation algorithm is then used to search for the approximately optimum configuration of the parallel packets,which guarantees the test quality and minimizes the test cost.Finally,a multi-threading technology is used to ensure that the Monte-Carlo simulation can reach the approximately optimum configuration in a large random space and reduce the generating time of the parallel test.Experimental results show that the proposed method achieves a high fault coverage with a reduced test overhead.Moreover,by performing online testing in the functional mode with SBST,it effectively avoids the over-testing problem caused by functionally untestable turns in kilo-core NoCs.

医疗器械检验报告审核和质量管理探讨

目的:医疗器械具有复杂性、特殊性、专业性、涉及门类广等特点,面对医疗器械开放自检及检验市场竞争日益加剧的形势,如何提升检验能力,适应产业的迅速发展,确保检验结果的科学性、公正性、权威性,是各医疗器械检验机构面临的共同挑战。方法:从医疗器械检验面临的挑战、法律法规要求、质量管理体系关注要点等方面进行阐述。结果:通过对报告审核中发现的问题,提出质量改进措施及建议。结论:医疗器械检验机构应持续提升检验能力,发展特色优势领域,积极应对医疗器械快速发展的需要及检验新形势,提质增效,应在医疗器械的质量检验工作中,引入风险管理理念并加强过程控制,从人、机、料、法、环等方面构建起全方位的保障体系,提高检验质量和效率,助力医疗器械高质量发展。

一种基于分压电路的绑定后TSV测试方法

对硅通孔(Through Silicon Via,TSV)进行绑定后测试可以有效地提升三维集成电路的性能和良率。现有的测试方法虽然对于开路和桥接故障的测试能力较高,但是对于泄漏故障的测试效果较差,并且所需的总测试时间较长。对此,提出了一种基于分压电路的TSV绑定后测试方法。该方法设计了一种分压电路,进行泄漏故障测试时可以形成一条无分支的电流路径,有效提高了对泄漏故障的测试能力。此外,该方法测试开路故障和泄漏故障时的电流路径不会相互干扰,可以同时测试相邻TSV的开路故障和泄漏故障。实验结果表明,该方法可以测试10 kΩ以下的弱泄漏故障,并且在工艺偏差下依然能够保持较高的测试能力。相比同类测试方法,该方法所需面积开销更小,所需总测试时间更少。

PB840呼吸机气路分析及故障维修

呼吸机是一种能替代患者自主通气的医疗仪器,广泛应用于呼吸衰竭患者、呼吸支持治疗以及急救复苏过程,是医院急诊、重症加强护理病房最重要的抢救仪器。本文介绍了2例PB840呼吸机故障,故障现象均为呼吸机报警、停止送气,报警代码相似。第1例故障经过呼吸机扩展自检(Extenden Self Test,EST)后分析自检数据,发现为呼出端流量传感器Q3故障,经过柠檬酸浸泡处理Q3后故障解除;第2例故障为氧气调零流量检测失败,具体原因为氧比例电磁阀故障,更换配件后故障解除。通过两例故障提示维修人员需熟悉仪器的气路图,熟练掌握呼吸机EST方法,提高维修准确度。

基于Self-Attention-BiLSTM网络的西瓜种苗叶片氮磷钾含量高光谱检测方法

元素含量无损检测技术可以为植物生长发育的环境精准调控提供关键实时数据。以西瓜苗为例,提出了一种基于图谱特征融合的氮磷钾含量深度学习检测方法。首先,使用高光谱仪拍摄西瓜苗叶片的高光谱图像,使用连续流动化学分析仪测定叶片的3种元素含量。然后,采用基线偏移校正(BOC)叠加高斯平滑滤波(GF)的光谱预处理方法和随机森林算法(RF)建立预测模型,基于竞争性自适应重加权采样(CARS)和连续投影算法(SPA)2种算法初步筛选出特征波长,再综合考虑波长数和建模精度设计了一种最优波长评价方法,将波长数进一步减少到3~4个。最后,提取使用U-Net网络分割的彩色图像颜色和纹理特征,和光谱反射率特征一起作为输入,基于自注意力机制-双向长短时记忆(Self-Attention-BiLSTM)网络构建了3种元素含量的预测模型。实验结果表明,氮磷钾含量预测的R2分别为0.961、0.954、0.958,RMSE分别为0.294%、0.262%、0.196%,实现了很好的建模效果。使用该模型对另2个品种西瓜进行测试,R2超过0.899、RMSE小于0.498%,表明该模型具有很好的泛化性。该高光谱建模方法使用少量波长光谱即实现了高精度检测,在精度和效率上达成了很好的平衡,为后续便携式高光谱检测装备开发奠定了理论基础。

自适应初始光子收集半径的卡方渐进光子映射

卡方渐进光子映射(chi-squared progressive photon mapping, CPPM)使用K近邻法(K nearest neighbor, KNN)为命中点确定初始半径,导致图像中光照均匀区域的噪点及明暗交界区域和焦散区域的模糊。针对此问题,提出一种计算光子映射初始半径的算法,自适应地为各命中点确定初始半径:为CPPM算法增加预处理环节,根据对光子分布的均匀程度的检验及对高频区域的筛选为命中点设置初始半径,以保证光照均匀区域的命中点保持在大半径上,光照变化区域的命中点半径快速下降。实验结果表明,改进算法减少了光子映射算法的方差和偏差,提高了渲染效果。

膨润土浆液及其自凝灰浆黏度微观机理研究

不同厂家生产的钠基膨润土在相同配比要求下制备的自凝灰浆黏度差别很大,其本质是材料微观组分、结构不一致。基于SEM、XRD、EDS与NMR等微观试验,对两个厂家生产的同类钠基膨润土(简称湘源土和玉龙土)及其所制自凝灰浆进行试验分析,并据此对其黏度微观机理进行研究。结果如下:湘源土和玉龙土浆液黏度具有触变性,“卡片宫”的建立与Q~4结构的生成会促使其黏度上升,剪切作用会破坏微观结构使其黏度降低;湘源土蒙脱石含量高于玉龙土的,所以其浆液黏度整体高于玉龙土浆液。搅拌与低剪切作用促进蒙脱石颗粒小片层分散,小片层分散越多,停止剪切后膨润土浆液黏度越高。对于膨润土所制自凝灰浆,其黏度的变化主要依赖于内部电荷吸附与水化反应的程度,水化反应生成的C-S-H凝胶会促进浆液黏度提高。自凝灰浆在凝结过程中生成的碳硫硅酸钙不利于C-S-H凝胶生成,湘源土自凝灰浆碳硫硅酸钙含量高于玉龙土自凝灰浆的,所以其整体黏度低于玉龙土自凝灰浆的。

预应力CFRP布加固混凝土梁受弯试验

目的 研究不同加固方法下预应力碳纤维布加固混凝土梁的受弯性能,解决桥梁加固缺陷的问题。方法 制作了5根试验梁,其中一根为对比梁,不做任何加固处理,其余4根分别采用不同的锚固方式、不同的初始张拉力及不同的加固位置进行加固,通过控制变量,进行加载试验,分析其受弯性能的差异。结果 经加固后的试验梁承载能力与刚度明显增加,与对比梁相比,极限荷载分别提升了25%、22.06%、30.78%及36.76%;各试验梁达到屈服荷载时,经加固的试验梁挠度均小于对比梁产生的挠度,且模腔自锁式锚具锚固的试验梁挠度小于穿孔式自锁锚具锚固的试验梁挠度,相同锚固方法下初始张拉力较大的试验梁挠度要小于初始张拉力较小的试验梁挠度。结论 使用预应力碳纤维布加固混凝土梁能够有效提高混凝土梁的抗弯性能,提升效果与加固位置、锚固方式及初始张拉力大小有关。