Find a therapist near you

City or Zip Code:

Powered by: Psychology Today

Advertisement

Related Programs

The Fight Against HIV: Resistance Testing Making The Decision To Start HIV Therapy

HIV and AIDS

Fast and Easy HIV Testing

Summary & Participants

Tests that can rapidly detect HIV are an important advancement in the fight against HIV and AIDS. Will these fast and easy tests lead to greater screening?

Medically Reviewed On: July 06, 2008

Webcast Transcript

And when the results of the ELISA and the Western blot are obtained by the laboratory and sent to your physician or a testing service, they then call you and say the results are available, and typically, you get the result in person, where you receive post-test counseling.

ANNOUNCER: While effective, the ELISA and Western blot tests, have some flaws. Standard HIV tests require drawing of a blood sample which can be a deterrent for some people. Additionally, standard HIV tests are at least a two-appointment process: the first for pretest counseling and the drawing of blood, and the second to get the results. This results in perhaps the biggest roadblock in HIV testing: the waiting period between when the blood is drawn and the results are determined, which can sometimes take up to two weeks.

JEFFREY LAURENCE, MD: Many, many people never show up to get their test results. Even if you're highly motivated to come in and you get your blood drawn, this idea of, "I'm going to have to wait a week or two, in some clinics, more than that, to get my results" turns off a lot of people.

And some people just get worried, they get scared, they say, "You know, I wanted to know then, but I really don't want to know now."

ANNOUNCER: But recently, the FDA has approved two new rapid HIV tests which may help overcome these flaws.

JEFFREY LAURENCE, MD: One of them, the one that's most available, is a blood test, but rather than taking a tube of blood from your arm, you take a pinprick from your finger. And that test takes only about fifteen to twenty minutes.

The sensitivity of this test, on the first run, just like the ELISA test for a standard blood sample, is identical to what it is for the standard test that takes much longer.

There's a second test which is much newer; it has only been approved by the US FDA now for about six months. And that's an oral test, whereas instead of looking for antibodies in your blood the way the rapid test does, the way the standard test does, we can look for the same types of antibodies in fluids in your mouth: saliva and another type of fluid that's secreted by the salivary glands. And that test is also highly accurate.

So with the availability of rapid tests, either using a small pinprick blood sample or an oral fluid sample, we can get you those test results while you're sitting there waiting in the physician's office, literally within fifteen to twenty minutes.

ANNOUNCER: The development of rapid HIV tests represent another advancement in the fight against HIV and AIDS. And healthcare professionals agree that testing is the crucial first step in preventing the spread of HIV.

JEFFREY LAURENCE, MD: I think HIV testing is important for everyone.Clearly, there's the psychological comfort of knowing that you're HIV negative or potentially HIV positive. But there's also a public health issue of not spreading the virus, and an individual issue of getting that test and getting that information and using that information and getting the person into treatment.

For additional information on HIV testing please consult these resources: www.hivtest.org, www.knowhivaids.org, 1.866.344.KNOW.

<< Previous Page 2 of 2