Abbot Laboratories HIV Screening Test Gets FDA Approval

A rapid HIV detection test has recently been approved by the FDA. This new test will reveal the presence of the virus approximately a week earlier than the screening tests used today. The current tests used to detect HIV take at least two to eight weeks and only reveal the virus once the body has developed antibodies to fight it. In many cases, it is too late and the person may have already infected somebody else. The first few weeks following the initial infection a person may not even realize they have contracted the virus. Experts believe at least one in every five people with the virus are unaware they have it.

The newest test developed by Abbot Laboratories, is already approved in the U.K. The test is called ARCHITECT HIV Ag/Ab Combo assay and is expected to be available by the end of the year. This is the fourth generation of the HIV screening tool. The test has been approved for pregnant women. Earlier detection will allow treatment to begin early in the pregnancy to help prevent the virus being transmitted to the fetus. The Abbot test is also the first test that has been approved for children under two years of age.

It is estimated that one million people in the US currently have HIV. Every year, approximately another 56,000 people are infected with the deadly virus. Experts believe earlier detection may help reduce the spread of the virus. The test will cost close to the same as the current screening method.