Performance of a Rapid Immunochromatographic Screening Test for Detection of Antibodies to Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) and HIV-2: Experience at a Tertiary Care Hospital in South India

The performance characteristics of a rapid immunochromatographic-screening test, SD Bioline HIV-1/2 3.0 (Standard Diagnostics Inc., Kyonggi-do, South Korea) on 23,754 sera and 30 plasma samples are reported. The sensitivity and specificity for the assay on serum samples are 100% and 99.4%, respectively. The assay detected antibodies in individuals infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) genotypes A and C and HIV-2. This straightforward assay is a reliable diagnostic tool for screening HIV in resource-poor settings