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Researchers at Melbourne’s Burnet
Institute say an inexpensive blood test they developed can be used in
developing nations to determine the CD4 levels of people infected with HIV.
The finger-prick blood test gives
results in 40 minutes, said Professor Suzanne Crowe, co-director of Burnet’s
Center for Virology. “It will tell the health worker if the person’s immune
system has declined to the level where they require treatment for HIV,” she
said. The test will cost less than $2 (US $2).
A test for CD4 levels already is
available in developing countries, but it is more expensive and requires
medical equipment and skilled health workers to draw blood from the patient’s
vein. The new test does not require a laboratory, medical equipment,
electricity, batteries or refrigeration.
People living in remote areas of
poor countries sometimes have to walk for days to reach a clinic that offers
HIV tests, with results often taking weeks. Testers then need to return to the
clinic for follow-up testing, including measuring for CD4 levels. “It’s a
catch-22 at the moment because often the drugs are available but the test to
give them access to the treatment is too expensive or not available,” said
Crowe. Same-day CD4 results could potentially let people start treatment the
day they are tested, preventing loss to follow-up.
Crowe and co-developer Associate
Professor David Anderson, deputy director at Burnet, hope the test will be
available by the end of the year. The test was recently licensed for commercial
development by Omega Diagnostics Group. Aid groups in Papua New Guinea, India,
and South Africa are likely to be the first to access the test.
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit:
http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
