New test for AIDS.

Initial results of research indicate that the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) in Washington D.C. has developed an HIV-1 screening test the HIV ImmunoDot Test appropriate to conditions in developing countries. This means its affordable quick simple and can be manufactured in developing countries. The need for such a test is based on the occurrence of HIV transmission through blood transfusions to anemic women and children which is a leading cause of hospitalization. It is reported that in the hospital Mama Yemo of Kinshasa Zaire that 12800 transfusions were performed annually in 1985/6 of which 560 children contracted the AIDs virus that same year. The rate is 15% of patients compared to 2% for Europe. Although the number of transfusions in this hospital have declined blood from donors is frequently contaminated by hepatitis malaria syphilis or HIV-1. The HIV ImmunoDot Test produces results in 20 minutes. It is highly sensitive; easy to interpret requires no refrigeration special equipment or instruments; and costs 500000 is 12 US cents per unit test compared to the ELISA test of 207 US dollars per unit test. The PATH ImmunoDot Test is stable for up to a year at ambient temperatures typical in Equatorial Africa. The test occasionally shows positive results when it is not (98.2% specificity). Such tests are rare enough that followup with ELISA or Western Blot can confirm accurate results. It is preferable to discard a unit of blood than to transmit the virus. The research was part of an international collaborative effort.