blood donation - hiv tests - Europe

[vincentkor]

Hi,

I'm only curious. Group O of HIV is very rare in USA. In Europe (especially in France) is this group slightly more prevalent. In Europe blood donors are tested by standard 4th generation ELISA HIV-1/HIV-2/p24. How much would you calculate sensitivity of this test to detect group O? 80%, 90%, 99% or even 100%?

Thanks for your opinion.

[Teak]

Most all ELISA tests test for both Types, all groups and all subtypes.

[vincentkor]

Thanks Teak :-)

I've guessed it.

I was only confused by this (faq from avert.org) :

"Do tests detect HIV-2 and all subtypes of HIV-1?
All antibody tests should detect the most common subtypes of HIV-1. The majority of HIV tests will also now detect HIV-2 and all but the very rarest of HIV-1 subtypes (usually only found in endemic areas in West Africa). A test that specifically detects the rare HIV-1 group O is also now available, though in most cases, a standard antibody test would identify a group O infection. For detailed information, see our page about HIV subtypes."


I guess it is some old information because I heard from more people (and some experts) nowadays EIA detect group O.

[Teak]

100% at 3 months post exposure like their testing guidelines states.