HIV test approved for the home

First home HIV test approved in the US

04/07/2012

A home-based HIV test has been approved in the US that allows anyone to easily check if they have HIV infection without the need for a doctor. Since many people are ashamed today to have a corresponding examination performed by the doctor and / or shy away from the effort, the test can mean a significant improvement for them. But it also carries risks, because the likelihood of a misdiagnosis is relatively high.

With the help of special cotton buds, the new test allows a quick, uncomplicated study on HIV. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted an approval to the OraSureTechnologies HIV test, so the test („OraQuick In-home“) can be purchased from October for the equivalent of around 20 euros. Both the manufacturer and the FDA described the HIV home test as a huge step forward in the detection of HIV. So anyone can quickly and easily check at home, whether a disease threatens the immunodeficiency syndrome AIDS. After twenty to forty minutes, the test yields the result, although only 92 percent of HIV infections are actually detected. Every twelfth infection remains undetected in the home HIV test.

HIV Home Test delivers the result after 40 minutes
In the future, anyone in the US can screen for HIV using the over-the-counter home-based test. A smear of the oral mucosa is sufficient and after a maximum of 40 minutes, the test delivers the result. However, not every HIV infection is reliably detected by the now approved procedure. According to the FDA, clinical trials have shown 92% confidence in the test for HIV. This means that every twelfth test of an HIV sufferer „According to the FDA's announcement, there is a real danger that a present HIV infection will not be detected, and the HIV home test provides no final safety and, in case of doubt, can not replace the doctor's visit, the FDA warned Especially if the last contact with HIV-infected people is only a short time ago (maximum of three months), the validity of the HIV home test is only small.

Many HIV-infected people are unaware of their condition
As around 20 percent of the estimated 1.2 million HIV-infected people in the US are unaware of their disease, the experts in the home test see - despite the limited diagnostic certainty - a significant improvement. Also, the test, at least in healthy people relatively reliably delivered the correct result. Only one out of 5,000 healthy users of the HIV home test had mistakenly reported HIV infection. (Fp)

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