Clinical Preventive Services -
Counseling -

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendations:

All adolescent and adult patients should be advised about risk factors for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and counseled appropriately about effective measures to reduce the risk of infection (see Clinical Intervention). Counseling should be tailored to the individual risk factors, needs, and abilities of each patient. This recommendation is based on the proven efficacy of risk reduction, although the effectiveness of clinician counseling in the primary care setting is uncertain. Individuals at risk for specific STDs should be offered testing in accordance with recommendations on screening for syphilis, gonorrhea, hepatitis B virus infection, HIV infection, and chlamydial infection (see Screening for Hepatitis B Virus Infection, Screening for Syphilis, Screening for Gonorrhea, Screening for HIV Infection, and Screening for Chlamydial Infection). Injection drug users should be advised about measures to reduce their risk and referred to appropriate treatment facilities (see Screening for Drug Abuse).

• To refer to the Clinical Interventions or view the complete entry for this topic, see the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services: Second Edition (1996).