摘要：People have argued that the benefits of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing and counselling are so important that participants in HIV surveys must be given their HIV test results and that individuals who decline to receive their test results should be excluded from participation in such surveys.1–3In early attempts at HIV surveillance, there were many logistical issues that complicated the return of test results and few advantages to infected individuals in receiving their test results.4 Now the situation has changed radically with the widespread roll-out of HIV treatment and care – which not only prolongs life but also reduces sexual and vertical transmission of HIV.2 We agree that researchers now have an obligation to offer and encourage post-test counselling as part of a research encounter but argue that there are both practical and ethical reasons to allow study participants to opt out of post-test counselling.
