Are Home HIV Testing Kits Reliable?

Possibly no medical test is as important to understand as the HIV test. HIV tests are done to identify the existence of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). HIV causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), in saliva, serum, or urine.

By testing for the HIV, one can know for sure if they have HIV. People do not have an awareness of its symptoms and can live for many years without actually knowing they have the virus.

If you think you may have the virus, you need to find it out as soon as possible. However, there is a reliable, quick and completely private method to know.

No, you don’t have to fix an appointment with a doctor or get a referral from a clinic to do so; neither has to leave your house. Just have to purchase a Home HIV Test System via mail, phone, fax order, online delivery, whichever is convenient to you.

HIV Testing

By using this easy to use system, you will be able to know its presence in the body. This home test system is used by many people and has given them peace of mind about HIV. It has also assisted others in keeping the infection under control.

Test One Can Trust

Though there is a wide variety of home HIV tests available in the market, to come up with a reliable one is a tough choice. Do extensive research before actually purchasing a kit.

Buy an HIV test kit which has the approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). If you are not sure about a particular home test Kit’s approval, then you can log on to the FDA official website and check the agency’s list of screening tests all by yourself.

Do not fall prey to malevolent promises made by many companies, such as 99.4 accurate results in every use, as tests made by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have found them to be a marketing gimmick, more than that of a clinically approved one.

So, how true are the results?

Before using these kits, all of us face one unavoidable question- are such test accurate? If a person does not have HIV, then the test is 99.5 percent accurate.

This also means that five people out of 1000 who don’t have the virus may have the wrong information about having antibodies to HIV. That is why you should go for a second test to confirm the result if you get a positive reading.

In case you recently shared a needle, or have unprotected sex, or might have done something that has made you exposed to HIV infection, then remember the test won’t work on newly infected bodies.

It takes around two to eight weeks for antibodies to show up in the blood of an infected person. In rare cases, it can take up to three-six months.

HIV Test

Advantages Of The Home Test

  • A person who is afraid of going to a clinic can easily do the test at his/ her home, without anyone knowing it. Using a home HIV test system alone will help them stay relaxed and comfortable.
  • One can buy these test kits via mail, phone, fax order, online delivery, whichever is convenient to you. You do not have to worry about moving near a local clinic to buy it, and this is also the easiest method for homebound people with disabilities.
  • Buy an HIV test kit which is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).The tests approved by the FDA are very accurate as compared to other clinical tests used by clinics throughout the country. Do extensive research before purchasing a kit.

Disadvantages Of The Home Test

Though the home test kit has a lot of advantages, including anonymity, ease, and accuracy, it also has potential drawbacks to its name.

  • The homemade tests are relatively slow, whereas, in the clinic, rapid HIV tests are carried out, which can produce the result in 20 minutes.
  • Doing a clinical HIV test will allow you to consult with a health care professional who can answer your questions and offer advice. This is a major issue in the home testing kit.
  • Home test kits are a bit expensive as compared to moving to a health center department for an HIV test check-up. Some private health care units and Health Center Department offer free of cost HIV test check up to people.

Keeping aside few minus points, the Home HIV testing kits is a reliable and valuable kit. Of course, testing at home for HIV is much better than not checking at all.

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