HIV testing: state of the art

Article Abstract:

HIV virus infection can be detected using several different tests. Most of these tests detect HIV-1 antibodies, proteins produced by the immune system to kill the virus. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in combination with the confirmatory Western blot test is used most frequently to detect HIV-1 antibodies. A person is considered HIV-1 positive only after two positive ELISA tests and one positive Western blot test because up to 70% of the ELISA test results are false positives. There are very few cases of HIV-2 infection in the US, but the Food and Drug Administration recommends that all blood banks begin testing for it in June 1992. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method can detect HIV-1 sooner than the ELISA during the first six to eight weeks following infection. This test makes more than a million copies of viral DNA in less than three hours and can detect one molecule of viral DNA. New methods of culturing HIV-1 from blood samples can detect the virus in 97% of HIV-positive patients. Tests that could be used in the general population include saliva tests and blood tests that could be performed at home.

Diagnosis, HIV infection, HIV infections, Polymerase chain reaction, Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, Western immunoblotting, Western blot

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Safety of the blood supply

Article Abstract:

Since the early 1990's the US blood supply has become extremely safe. Blood has been screened for HIV since 1985. The test detects antibodies against the virus, but researchers are developing a test that will detect viral antigens directly. Mandatory screening for the hepatitis B virus has been in place since 1972. In 1990, a test for the hepatitis C virus was developed. Screening for human T-cell lymphotropic viruses I and II has reduced the risk of contracting these infections, which are rare in the US. Blood tests are available for cytomegalovirus, but most Americans have already been exposed and are not likely to develop an infection. All blood is tested for syphilis, although the organism that causes it does not usually survive long in stored, refrigerated blood. Tests for Trypanosoma cruzi are being developed for use in areas of the US that have many immigrants from Latin America, where the disease is endemic. The use of incompatible blood is responsible for most complications of blood transfusion.

Blood collection and preservation, Safety and security measures, Testing, Prevention, Blood

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Will Blood Transfusion Ever Be Safe Enough?

Article Abstract:

There may always be a risk of contracting a blood-borne disease from a blood transfusion in the US, but the risk is very small. A study of 1.9 million units of blood donated between 1991 and 1996 showed that the risk of developing HIV infection and hepatitis C from a blood transfusion was very small. According to the CDC, only 38 adults and 2 children have contracted HIV infection from a blood transfusion in the US in the 15 years that donated blood has been tested for H1V, and not a single new case of transfusion-associated hepatitis C has been detected since 1994.

Health aspects, Editorial, Risk factors, HIV (Viruses), HIV, Disease transmission, Blood transfusion

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