Screening for HIV: Can We Afford the False Positive Rate?
- 23 July 1987
- journal article
- Published by Massachusetts Medical Society in New England Journal of Medicine
- Vol. 317 (4) , 238-241
- https://doi.org/10.1056/nejm198707233170410
Abstract
We are a testing culture: we test our urine for drugs; we test our sweat for lies. It is not surprising that we should also test our blood for the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). But before we screen low-risk groups for antibody to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), we should consider what the results will mean. Tests for HIV antibody appear to be characterized by extraordinarily low false positive rates. Even so, positive initial and confirmatory tests in someone at low risk of HIV infection are by no means synonymous with infection, because of the possibility of false positive results. . . .Keywords
This publication has 11 references indexed in Scilit:
- Diagnosis of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection by Immunoassay Using a Molecularly Cloned and Expressed Virus Envelope PolypeptideAnnals of Internal Medicine, 1987
- The Prevention of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome in the United StatesJAMA, 1987
- HIV antibody screening in a low-risk population (blood donors)Transfusion, 1987
- Decision AnalysisNew England Journal of Medicine, 1987
- FALSE-POSITIVE WESTERN BLOT REACTIONS TO HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS IN BLOOD DONORSThe Lancet, 1986
- BLOOD DONOR SERA WITH FALSE-POSITIVE WESTERN BLOT REACTIONS TO HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUSThe Lancet, 1986
- EVALUATION OF SIX ENZYME IMMUNOASSAYS FOR ANTIBODY AGAINST HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUSThe Lancet, 1986
- False-Positive Western Blot Tests for Antibodies to HTLV-IIINPublished by American Medical Association (AMA) ,1986
- Prevalence of HTLV-III Antibody in American Blood DonorsNew England Journal of Medicine, 1985
- Detection of human anti‐HTLV‐III antibodies by indirect immunofluorescence using fixed cellsTransfusion, 1985