Performance of rapid HIV testing by lay counselors in the field during the behavioral and biological surveillance survey among female sex workers and men who have sex with men in Botswana.

: The study assessed the performance of rapid HIV testing with whole blood using Kehua Bio-engineering HIV (1 + 2) and Uni-Gold HIV test kits by trained and certified lay counselors, offered to female sex workers and men who have sex with men during the 2012 survey fieldwork. The results of rapid HIV testing were compared with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay testing performed in a parallel algorithm at the HIV Reference Laboratory. The sensitivity and the specificity of rapid HIV testing were high for men who have sex with men and female sex workers, with 98.1% and 100%, and 98.2% and 98.5%, respectively. Misclassifications occurred with rapid testing.