Conventional testing for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)--the causative agent for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)--is an efficient way to screen large numbers of samples at one time. But initial results are often not available for hours or days; moreover, results are typically not released until confirmed, which can be weeks later. Consequently, conventional testing doesn't always provide information on HIV status quickly enough to be clinically useful. This limitation has led to the development of rapid HIV test kits, which can provide results in 20 minutes or less. Rapid HIV tests can be used for testing pregnant women in labor whose HIV status is unknown (to reduce vertical transmission from mother to fetus or infant) and for testing source individuals after occupational exposures (to help with drug treatment decisions). Additionally, the use of rapid test kits for screening high-risk individuals (especially those who may not return for results) is expected to increase the number of individuals who know their HIV status. This Evaluation looks at three rapid HIV tests currently available in the United States: the MedMira Labs Reveal G2 Rapid HIV-1 Antibody Test Kit, the OraSure Technologies OraQuick Advance Rapid HIV-1/2 Antibody Test, and the Trinity Biotech Uni-Gold Recombigen HIV. We rate the kits separately for laboratory use and for point-of-care testing (POCT). For laboratory applications, efficiency and suitability for the lab's workflow are the key selection factors. For POCT, ease of use is paramount. A different product was our top choice for each of these applications.
对人类免疫缺陷病毒（HIV，即获得性免疫缺陷综合征（AIDS）的病原体）进行常规检测是一次性筛查大量样本的有效方法。但初始结果往往要数小时或数天后才能获得；此外，结果通常要在得到确认后才会公布，这可能要等到数周之后。因此，常规检测并不总能足够迅速地提供有关HIV感染状况的信息以供临床使用。这一局限性促使了快速HIV检测试剂盒的开发，这种试剂盒能在20分钟或更短时间内给出结果。快速HIV检测可用于检测分娩时HIV感染状况不明的孕妇（以减少母婴垂直传播给胎儿或婴儿），以及职业暴露后的源头个体检测（以辅助药物治疗决策）。此外，使用快速检测试剂盒对高危个体（尤其是那些可能不会回来获取检测结果的人）进行筛查，有望增加知晓自己HIV感染状况的人数。本评估考察了美国目前可用的三种快速HIV检测：MedMira实验室的Reveal G2快速HIV-1抗体检测试剂盒、奥然生物科技公司的OraQuick Advance快速HIV-1/2抗体检测试剂，以及三一生物科技公司的Uni-Gold Recombigen HIV检测试剂。我们分别对这些试剂盒用于实验室检测和即时检测（POCT）的情况进行评级。对于实验室应用，效率和是否适合实验室工作流程是关键的选择因素。对于即时检测，易用性至关重要。在这些应用中，每种应用都有不同的产品成为我们的首选。
