Testing for HIV
HIV infection can be diagnosed through an HIV antibody test. When a person is infected with HIV, the body produces proteins to fight the virus. These are called antibodies.
Lerato Maduna
The body usually produces antibodies within 3-8 weeks in response to the infection. The period following infection but before antibodies can be detected by the test is known as the "window period". Because it is possible to test negative during this period, people who have been exposed to HIV are encouraged to take another test three months later to ensure that they are HIV-negative.
Tests can be conducted using samples of blood, saliva or urine. In South Africa the most common test used is the Rapid Test, which provides a result in 10-30 minutes. If the test is positive this is followed up by confirmatory test, which utilises the Elisa Test.
Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT)
Testing for HIV should be conducted along with pre- and post-test counseling. People are counseled before an HIV test to ensure they understand the benefits of an HIV test and how they should respond to the result, particularly if they test HIV-positive. Post-test counseling is provided to lend emotional support to the individual and offer appropriate medical and social advice.
John Hodgkiss/Perinatal HIV Research Unit (PHRU)
In South Africa an HIV test may be undertaken through private doctors, at public (i.e. government) clinics and hospitals, or at laboratories. In some urban areas tests can be undertaken at the AIDS Training, Information and Counseling Centre (ATICC). At least 67% of South African public health clinics provide voluntary counseling and testing. 690 537 people used VCT services in 2003/04, according to the health ministry.
The South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence, Behaviour and Communication Survey 2008 (p.48) found that 50.8% of the population were tested via VCT services in their respective areas. From previous surveys (2002, 2005) it was found that there was a considerable rise in the amounts of VCT testing among the age group of 15+ years. In 2002 this percentage was at 21.4 and 30.5 in 2005. Of those tested in the 2008 survey nearly half have been tested prior to the study and were aware of their HIV status.
For more on counseling and testing in South Africa, visit these resources:
Home testing
In South Africa, home-testing kits are generally not sold in the public sector. In May 2005, a franchise of the Pick 'n Pay supermarket chain was lambasted by theSouth African Medical Association for selling HIV self-testing kits. The franchise subsequently stopped selling the kits.
The South African Department of Health stipulates that HIV/AIDS testing must be accompanied by pre- and post-test counselling, which is impossible to guarantee with rapid home HIV testing.
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