title: The INSTI HIV-1/HIV-2 antibody test: a review.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Rapid HIV tests have been widely adopted globally as an important component of HIV prevention and control programs. The INSTI™ HIV-1/HIV-2 antibody test is a second-generation HIV antibody test, available in most countries for use from whole blood, serum, and plasma.
  
  
  METHODS
  Available data on kit characteristics and current performance data on the INSTI™ HIV-1/HIV-2 antibody test are presented together with six other rapid point-of-care tests (RPOCTs) for HIV antibody. Few published data are available providing direct comparisons of INSTI™ with other RPOCTs for HIV antibody and standard laboratory-based HIV-1/HIV-2 antibody assays. Existing data showed that INSTI™ has comparable performance to other RPOCTs but detected seroconversion later than standard laboratory-based assays.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The good performance of INSTI HIV-1/HIV-2 antibody test, its ease of use, the rapid availability of results (< 5 min), and the lack of specialized equipment required to use the kit make this kit a useful addition to the global market. The unique antigen and flow through technology contained in the kit make it a strong addition to HIV RPOCTs and to rapid/rapid algorithms used in many resource-limited settings.
authors.affiliation: University of Alberta, Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, c/o 3B20-11111 Jasper Ave, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. ameeta@ualberta.ca
authors.forename: Ameeta E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Bonita
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Jayne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fenton
authors.forename: Jutta
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Preiksaitis
mesh_terms: D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology*; D015498:HIV-2 / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007118:Immunoassay; D019095:Point-of-Care Systems; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D015483:HIV Antibodies; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic