Abbott, a leading global healthcare company, has launched a groundbreaking triple screening test designed to significantly reduce mother-to-child transmission of HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis across Africa.
Unveiled during the IAS2025 conference in Kigali, the WHO-approved Determine Antenatal Care Panel (ANC Panel) uses a single finger prick to screen for all three infections, delivering results in just 20 minutes.
In Uganda, around 75% of pregnant women are tested for HIV. However, syphilis and hepatitis B testing remain below 50%, particularly in rural regions. While Kenya reports over 90% HIV testing coverage and Tanzania around 85%, the screening for the other two infections remains inconsistent.
This testing gap continues to expose thousands of mothers and newborns to vertical transmission, where infections are passed during pregnancy or childbirth—often with severe health consequences.
In 2023 alone, sub-Saharan Africa recorded approximately 190,000 new pediatric HIV infections, mostly through mother-to-child transmission, alongside rising cases of congenital syphilis and perinatal hepatitis B.
The ANC Panel aims to streamline the diagnostic process, allowing for all three infections to be detected in a single session. This reduces clinic wait times, cuts down repeat visits, and lowers the financial burden on patients.
Dr. Missiani Ochwoto, speaking at a media roundtable held alongside IAS2025, highlighted the urgency of such innovations:
“The test showed high accuracy and usability, even in challenging conditions. Yet, we found that over 95% of the women surveyed had never been tested for all three diseases before. This highlights a major gap that this tool is now helping us to close.”
The study also revealed that the average clinic visit time dropped from 113 minutes to just 39, freeing up resources and enhancing efficiency in maternal health service delivery.
Steven Henn, Abbott’s Head of Global Commercial Operations for Rapid Diagnostics, reaffirmed the company’s commitment:
“Abbott has a 25-year legacy supporting the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Africa. With this new testing panel, we are now able to extend this legacy to help eliminate the transmission of syphilis and hepatitis B as well—keeping mothers and their children safe.”
The innovation arrives at a pivotal time as countries work toward 2030 WHO elimination targets for HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B. The ANC Panel is critical to national eMTCT (elimination of mother-to-child transmission) strategies, especially in underserved communities.
Despite growing efforts to enhance antenatal care, millions of pregnant women in East Africa still lack access to complete screening for these three preventable infections, which continue to cause illness, complications, and death when undetected.
At IAS2025, Dr. Deborah Birx, former U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, commended the initiative:
“What excites me is that countries themselves are leading this effort. Abbott’s product now offers up to 99% coverage, a remarkable leap from years ago when the rates were much lower.”
With maternal and newborn health still a pressing public health priority across the continent, this triple test could be a game-changer in the fight to end vertical transmission and achieve universal health coverage.
