What you need to know about home HIV testing

Everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 should get at least one HIV test as part of routine testing. Too many people have a virus that can cause AIDS and don't know it.

If you or someone close to you is at increased risk of contracting HIV, for example, due to needle drug use or unprotected sex, it is a good idea to get tested often. You can get tested in many places, including your doctor's office, pharmacies, and local health clinics.

You can also take the test yourself at home. Here's how to do it and what you need to know about the self-assessment.

Types of home tests

Home access testing system for HIV-1. With this over-the-counter kit, you prick your finger and put a drop of blood on a certain piece. He then sends the sample to a testing laboratory. You should wait about a week before calling a toll-free number to get your results using your anonymous personal identification number. You will also be offered advice over the phone if you need it.

OraQuick HIV home test. You can purchase this test online or at a pharmacy. This rapid result test looks for HIV antibodies in a saliva sample. The upper and lower gums are rubbed with a test stick. Then insert the sample into a vial filled with liquid and wait 20-40 minutes and read the result.

Accuracy

The Home Access HIV-1 test method is extremely reliable. Studies show that it will detect antibodies to HIV, indicating that your blood contains the virus that causes AIDS, more than 99.9% of the time. When your sample comes back positive, the lab confirms it with another test before you can request your result.

The test is also 99.9% accurate if your results are negative, which means you do not have HIV. So you can be sure of one or the other answer.

The OraQuick home HIV test is less accurate. This test will find HIV antibodies 92% of the time. This means that you will miss HIV infection in 1 in 12 people who have it. OraQuick rarely gives false-positive results, which means it's unlikely to say you have HIV if you don't.

But experts recommend that if you get a positive OraQuick result, you should consider the results preliminary. You need to confirm this with a second test from your doctor or a medical clinic so you can get the care you need.

For both tests, if you get a negative result, you may want to get tested again if you've recently done something that could have exposed you to the virus. This is because it can take 3-6 months for your body to produce antibodies against HIV. Therefore, testing before or during this "window period" may not detect an infection.

The right test for you

Should you get tested for HIV at a clinic or your doctor's office, or should you test yourself? And which home test is right for you? The answers to these questions can help you decide:

• How important is it that no one else knows about you taking the test or your results?

• How important is precision?

• Are you ready to take a follow-up test if needed?

• How quickly do you want to get your results?

• How would you like to receive your results?

If you are at risk of contracting HIV, any test is better than no test. A study of men who have sex with men who received self-tests by mail found they were more likely to get tested for HIV more often. So the tests found more HIV infections. The men who tested positive also shared the information with other people they knew.