• Serosh Naeem, Victoria Frye, Vijay Nandi, Mark Q Paige, Debbie Lucy, Geneva Ortiz, Beryl A Koblin, and Leo Wilton.
• Department of Community Health and Social Medicine, Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education/CUNY School of Medicine, City College of New York, City University of New York, Townsend Harris Hall, Room 404A, 160 Convent Avenue, New York, NY, 10031, USA.
• J Natl Med Assoc. 2020 Jun 1; 112 (3): 284-288.

BackgroundHIV self-testing (HST) is an important complement to existing testing approaches for young Black men who have sex with men (MSM) and transwomen.MethodsIn this formative research, we describe prevalence and perceptions of HST using qualitative in-depth interviews (n = 29) and baseline quantitative data (n = 302) from an HST intervention trial for young Black MSM and transwomen.ResultsIn the qualitative analysis, participants preferred the privacy and flexibility of the HST but had concerns about its accuracy and being alone while testing. Quantitative results showed that 14% (44/302) had used an HST in their lifetime; of these, 64% (28/44) used it once and 23% (10/44) in the last 3 months.ConclusionTo increase consistent testing, HST may provide a new avenue for at-risk individuals that value privacy and control and could benefit from social support during testing.Copyright © 2020 National Medical Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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