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TL;DR
The study was a systematic review and meta-analysis of nine randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effectiveness of counselling behavioural interventions on HIV, STI, and viral hepatitis incidence in key populations.
Journal of the International AIDS Society · 8 authors, 3 centres
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The study was a systematic review and meta-analysis of nine randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effectiveness of counselling behavioural interventions on HIV, STI, and viral hepatitis incidence in key populations.
The study was a systematic review and meta-analysis of nine randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effectiveness of counselling behavioural interventions on HIV, STI, and viral hepatitis incidence in key populations. The meta-analysis of six RCTs showed no statistically significant effect on HIV incidence (RR 0.70, 95% CI 0.41–1.20) or STI incidence (RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.74–1.31). There was also no effect on secondary outcomes of unprotected sex (RR 0.82, 95% CI 0.66–1.02) and needle/syringe sharing (RR 0.72, 95% CI 0.32–1.63). Evidence certainty was judged as moderate for the lack of effect across outcomes. The review noted limitations including a focus on incidence outcomes which may be rare, few studies for any particular key population, and limited data on viral hepatitis. The findings suggest these interventions alone were insufficient to address the structural factors shaping risk, though other forms of counselling may still have value for service engagement.