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Denver HIV Risk Score

Estimates probability of undiagnosed HIV infection to guide targeted screening.

Denver HIV Risk Score
Age
Sex
Race / ethnicity
Sexual contact with a male (past year)
Vaginal intercourse (past year)
Receptive anal intercourse without a condom (past year)
Injection drug use (past year)
Ever tested for HIV before
Result0 points

Very low risk of undiagnosed HIV infection (estimated prevalence 0.31 %).

Risk category
Very low risk
Estimated HIV prevalence
0.31 %

When to use

  • Prioritising targeted, non-universal HIV screening in emergency department or urgent-care settings.

Formula

Sum of weighted points for age band, sex, race/ethnicity, sexual contact with a male, vaginal intercourse, receptive anal intercourse without a condom, injection drug use, and prior HIV testing (some items subtract points). Range approximately -14 to +81.

Pearls and pitfalls

  • Higher scores (>=20) were used in the derivation cohort to trigger opt-out rapid HIV testing.

References

  1. Haukoos JS, et al. Am J Epidemiol. 2012;175(9):838-46.