Population Effects of Antiretroviral Therapy to Reduce HIV Transmission (PopART)
Condition: HIV
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      PopART is a community randomized trial that is investigating whether a community-wide
      combination HIV prevention package including annual home-based HIV testing, active referral
      and the offer of immediate ART for those testing HIV-positive, along with the promotion of
      proven HIV prevention methods (such as voluntary medical male circumcision, prevention of
      mother to child transmission and condom use), will help to prevent transmission and
      substantially reduce new HIV infections. The study is being conducted in 21 communities in
      Zambia and South Africa (randomized into 3 arms, each with 7 communities) with a total
      population of approximately 1.2 million individuals.
    

Detailed description: 
      HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 071 (PopART) will investigate the impact on HIV
      incidence of universal voluntary HIV counseling and testing (with referral to care) provided
      to a community through a house-to-house campaign, in combination with early ART for
      individuals who are HIV-positive, and other proven preventive interventions. The design of
      HPTN 071 (PopART) will allow the study team to distinguish between the impact of universal
      testing with referral for HIV care in accordance with national guidelines, and the impact of
      universal testing with referral for early ART initiation for those with HIV infection. In
      addition, HPTN 071 (PopART) will determine if a program of universal voluntary testing,
      including early ART initiation, is feasible and acceptable when delivered on a large scale to
      entire communities. Evaluating the effectiveness of universal voluntary HIV counseling and
      testing with the offer of early ART is a key global health priority.
    

Intervention name(s): Universal Testing with immediate ART; Universal Testing with ART eligibility according to National Guidelines; Standard of Care
Intervention type(s): Other; Other; Other
Intervention description(s): • Combination prevention package including:
o House-to-house deployment of: Universal HIV counseling and testing; Active linkage to care for individuals diagnosed as HIV-infected, with immediate eligibility for ART; Promotion of male circumcision and prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT) services; Provision of condoms; Strengthening of HIV testing and services at health facilities and other venues; Strengthening of male circumcision and prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV services available in the community; and Treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and provision of condoms at health units; Combination prevention package including:
House-to-house deployment of: Universal HIV counseling and testing; Active linkage to care for individuals diagnosed as HIV-infected, with ART eligibility according to national guidelines; Promotion of male circumcision and PMTCT services; Provision of condoms; Strengthening of HIV testing and services at health facilities and other venues; Strengthening of male circumcision and PMTCT services available in the community; and Treatment of STIs and provision of condoms at health units.
Other intervention name(s): PopART Intervention; UTT; PopART Intervention
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Prevention
Keywords: Universal Test and Treat (UTT); Combination Prevention