Along with chips, instant noodles and soft drinks, students in a growing number of Chinese universities now have the option of also grabbing an HIV test kit to go from their campus vending machine.

Three Shanghai universities have installed machines to offer the self-test kits this month as a part of a pilot project to promote early detection and treatment of HIV/AIDS in a culture where the virus is stigmatised.

The annual number of newly diagnosed HIV cases among teenagers aged 15 to 19 increased more than 150 per cent in China over the past decade.

As a part of the project, universities are selling the kits for a significantly discounted 30 yuan ($6.20), compared with 298 yuan ($61.20) on e-commerce site Taobao. A major drawcard of the system — in a country where HIV and homosexuality are still taboo subjects — is that students can do the test anonymously by dropping off their urine sample in the vending machine's return box for testing.

Students can check their results online after three to five working days by entering the serial number on the kit. During the trial period, the $6.20 is then reimbursed after receiving their result.

However, the Chinese Association of STD and HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control warned in a statement on their website that the test was only a "preliminary screening" and could provide a "false-positive result". Read more via ABC