Urgent need to address the slow scale-up of TB preventive treatment in the WHO South-East Asia Region

2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (5) ◽  
pp. 382-387
Author(s):  
S. Satyanarayana ◽  
V. Bhatia ◽  
P. P. Mandal ◽  
A. Kanchar ◽  
D. Falzon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Risk ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Preventive Treatment ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
South East Asia ◽  
High Level ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
East Asia Region

In September 2018, all countries made a commitment at the first ever United Nations High‐Level Meeting (UNHLM) on TB, to provide TB preventive treatment (TPT) to at least 30 million people at high‐risk of TB disease between 2018 and 2022. In the WHO South‐East Asia Region (SEA Region), which accounts for 44% of the global TB burden, only 1.2 million high‐risk individuals (household contacts and people living with HIV) were provided TPT (11% of the 10.8 million regional UNHLM TPT target) in 2018 and 2019. By 2020, almost all 11 countries of the SEA Region had revised their policies on TPT target groups and criteria to assess TPT eligibility, and had adopted at least one shorter TPT regimen recommended in the latest WHO TPT guidelines. The major challenges for TPT scale‐up in the SEA Region are resource shortages, knowledge and service delivery/uptake gaps among providers and service recipients, and the lack of adequate quantities of rifapentine for use in shorter TPT regimens. There are several regional opportunities to address these gaps and countries of the SEA Region must make use of these opportunities to scale up TPT services rapidly to reduce the TB burden in the SEA Region.

scholarly journals Implementing TB preventive treatment within differentiated HIV service delivery models in global programs

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 104-110
Author(s):  
A. T. Boyd ◽  
B. Moore ◽  
M. Shah ◽  
C. Tran ◽  
H. Kirking ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Service Delivery ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Preventive Treatment ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Emergency Plan ◽  
The Us ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
Delivery Models

Global HIV program stakeholders, including the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), are undertaking efforts to ensure that eligible people living with HIV (PLHIV) receiving antiretroviral treatment (ART) receive a course of TB preventive treatment (TPT). In PEPFAR programming, this effort may require providing TPT not only to newly diagnosed PLHIV as part of HIV care initiation, but also to treatment-experienced PLHIV stable on ART who may not have been previously offered TPT. TPT scale-up is occurring at the same time as a trend to provide more person-centered HIV care through differentiated service delivery (DSD). In DSD, PLHIV stable on ART may receive less frequent clinical follow-up or receive care outside the traditional clinic-based model. The misalignment between traditional delivery of TPT and care delivery in innovative DSD may require adaptations to TPT delivery practices for PLHIV. Adaptations include components of planning and operationalization of TPT in DSD, such as determination of TPT eligibility and TPT initiation, and clinical management of PLHIV while on TPT. A key adaptation is alignment of timing and location for TPT and ART prescribing, monitoring, and dispensing. Conceptual examples of TPT delivery in DSD may help program managers operationalize TPT in HIV care.

scholarly journals HIV-associated tuberculosis

2021 ◽  
pp. 095646242199225
Author(s):  
Yohhei Hamada ◽  
Haileyesus Getahun ◽  
Birkneh Tilahun Tadesse ◽  
Nathan Ford
Keyword(s):  
Scale Up ◽  
Preventive Treatment ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Timely Initiation ◽  
Adequate Funding ◽  
Tb Diagnostics ◽  
Living With Hiv

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among people living with HIV. HIV-associated TB disproportionally affects African countries, particularly vulnerable groups at risk for both TB and HIV. Currently available TB diagnostics perform poorly in people living with HIV; however, new diagnostics such as Xpert Ultra and lateral flow urine lipoarabinomannan assays can greatly facilitate diagnosis of TB in people living with HIV. TB preventive treatment has been underutilized despite its proven benefits independent of antiretroviral therapy (ART). Shorter regimens using rifapentine can support increased availability and scale-up. Mortality is high in people with HIV-associated TB, and timely initiation of ART is critical. Programs should provide decentralized and integrated TB and HIV care in settings with high burden of both diseases to improve access to services that diagnose TB and HIV as early as possible. The new prevention and diagnosis tools recently recommended by WHO offer an immense opportunity to advance our fight against HIV-associated TB. They should be made widely available and scaled up rapidly supported by adequate funding with robust monitoring of the uptake to advance global TB elimination.

scholarly journals TB preventive treatment in high- and intermediate-incidence countries: research needs for scale-up

2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (10) ◽  
pp. 823-831
Author(s):  
O. Oxlade ◽  
S. den Boon ◽  
D. Menzies ◽  
D. Falzon ◽  
M. Y. Lane ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Scale Up ◽  
Preventive Treatment ◽  
System Level ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Research Needs ◽  
Household Contacts ◽  
Incidence And Mortality ◽  
High Risk Populations ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND: In 2018, the WHO Member States committed to providing TB preventive treatment (TPT) to at least 30 million people by 2022. However, only 6.3 million people had initiated TPT by the end of 2019. Major knowledge gaps and research needs in diagnosis, treatment and the programmatic management of TPT (PMTPT) require to be addressed urgently.METHODS: In September 2019, a group of stakeholders involved in PMTPT in high TB burden countries met to develop an action agenda to support the global expansion of PMTPT.RESULTS: Barriers at the health system level, and priorities for research to overcome these, were identified for each step of the PMTPT cascade. The need for data on TPT financing, gaps and coverage under national health insurance schemes, as well as the need for mathematical and cost-effectiveness modelling of the impact of TPT on TB incidence and mortality were highlighted. Specific research needs were identified for high-risk populations such as household contacts of any age and people living with HIV, as well as other people at risk.CONCLUSIONS: The meeting facilitated agreement on a set of actions needed to ensure that PMTPT continues to expand to achieve the End TB Strategy targets.

scholarly journals Community-based model for the delivery of antiretroviral therapy in Cambodia: a quasi-experimental study protocol

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sovannary Tuot ◽  
Alvin Kuo Jing Teo ◽  
Kiesha Prem ◽  
Pheak Chhoun ◽  
Chamroen Pall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Antiretroviral Therapy ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Economic Evaluations ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Cad Model ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
Art Delivery

Abstract Background Multi-month dispensing (MMD) is the mainstay mechanism for clinically stable people living with HIV in Cambodia to refill antiretroviral therapy (ART) every 3-6 months. However, less frequent ART dispensing through the community-based ART delivery (CAD) model could further reduce the clients’ and health facilities’ burden. While community-based services have been recognized as an integral component of HIV response in Cambodia, their role and effectiveness in ART delivery have yet to be systematically assessed. This study aims to evaluate the CAD model’s effectiveness on the continuum of care and treatment outcomes for stable people living with HIV in Cambodia. Methods We will conduct this quasi-experimental study in 20 ART clinics across the capital city and nine provinces between May 2021 and April 2023. Study sites were purposively selected based on the availability of implementing partners, the number of people living with HIV each clinic serves, and the accessibility of the clinics. In the intervention arm, approximately 2000 stable people living with HIV will receive ART and services from the CAD model. Another 2000 stable people living with HIV in the control arm will receive MMD—a standard care model for stable people living with HIV. The primary outcomes will be retention in care, viral load suppression, and adherence to ART. The secondary endpoints will include health providers’ work burden, the model’s cost-effectiveness, quality of life, mental health, social support, stigma, and discrimination. We will compare the outcome indicators within each arm at baseline, midline, and endline using descriptive and inferential statistics. We will evaluate the differences between the intervention and control arms using the difference-in-differences method. We will perform economic evaluations to determine if the intervention is cost-effective. Discussion This study will build the evidence base for future implementation and scale-up of CAD model in Cambodia and other similar settings. Furthermore, it will strengthen engagements with community stakeholders and further improve community mobilization, a vital pillar of the Cambodian HIV response. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04766710. Registered 23 February 2021, Version 1.

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