New HIV test provides results in seconds

Charlie Fidelman , CanWest News Service; Montreal Gazette
Published: Thursday, November 29, 2007

MONTREAL -- A non-invasive test that can detect the virus that causes AIDS within seconds is being unveiled in Montreal Thursday. The 60-second HIV test gets a jump on current, laboratory-run tests that usually take seven to 10 days to process. The Health Canada-approved test can be done in a doctor's office using a droplet of blood from a fingertip.

The INSTI testing kit detects antibodies for the HIV virus using a chemical dye.
"Patients can get immediate, accurate results and avoid the grueling 10-day wait period," Matthew Clayton, executive vice-president of bioLytical Laboratories of British Columbia, said in a telephone interview. Tested on 16,500 people during the past two years, it proved 99.96 per cent accurate, Clayton said. A positive result would require further testing in a laboratory, he added.

It's an excellent screening tool that will help limit HIV spread, said Mark Wainberg, head of the McGill AIDS Centre. A member of bioLytical's scientific advisory board, Wainberg said the test has real benefits. An estimated one in four people don't know they are infected with HIV, and these people are considered the fastest spreaders of the infection, he said.

"There's evidence that those informed (of their HIV status) will modify their behaviour, and that's a big plus - that's what our study aims to do," Wainberg said.

Wainberg, who got a donation of 5,000 kit samples from the manufacturer, is to launch a screening pilot project from mobile clinics using the instant test. The project aims to target a vulnerable population, mostly men who sleep with men, that doesn't want to go to hospitals and clinics, said Michel Morin, assistant executive director of COCQ-Sida, an anti-AIDS coalition.

"We've known about the test for two years and we're very happy that it's available," he said.

But Morin warned against making the test available over-the-counter in pharmacies or using the self-testing kits sold on the Internet. Such use is controversial because it comes without counselling from a health professional, Morin said.

"It's not an easy diagnosis. It's not like a pregnancy test," he said.

Ontario bought the kits at $10 each for testing in its anonymous clinics. Quebec is analyzing who should get priority to the kits, said Helene Gingras, a Quebec health department spokeswoman.