Consumers beware: a company from Montreal is advertising do-it-yourself home diagnostic tests, and the US regulatory body (FDA 2005 safety alerts) has issued a warning, after consumers complained about the accuracy of the tests. The tests are not approved for sale in Canada, and a company that specializes in marketing and web design is marketing them. Even though some people feel more comfortable doing an HIV home test anonymously in the privacy of their home, they do well checking first, which tests are reliable, by looking up approved test kits on sites like Health Canada’s web page.The test kits in question are as follows:
-Rapid HIV test kit
-Rapid syphilis test kit
-One step cassette-style cocaine test
-One step cassette-style marijuana (THC) test
-One step cassette-style amphetamine test
-Rapid Dengue fever test
-One step midstream style HCG urine test
-Home pregnancy test.
Rapid HIV Tests – Not At Home
Globus Media website has been down since the FDA advisory, and no one from the company has been available for comment.
More information about AIDS and HIV: http://nethealthbook.com/infectious-disease/sexually-transmitted-disease/aids-introduction/
Reference: National Review of Medicine, Canada, March 15, 2005, page 5
Last edited October 28, 2014
