Africa: New Test to Diagnose Vaginal Inflammation Could Help Reduce Risk of HIV Infection

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In healthcare systems where resources are limited, it's common for some conditions to be overlooked or misdiagnosed. This is especially true if the patient doesn't have obvious symptoms, and if tests are unaffordable. Sometimes, healthcare providers look at a group of symptoms to reach a likely diagnosis. This so-called syndromic management is less accurate than laboratory-based diagnostics.

A good example of syndromic management is the World Health Organisation's guidelines for managing sexually transmitted infections and bacterial vaginosis (a disturbance in healthy vaginal bacterial communities). These conditions are frequently missed using this approach. They may also go untreated because women don't always have clinical symptoms. Untreated infections and bacterial imbalances increase the risk of HIV infection in women and the risk of pregnancy complications like preterm birth.

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