FDA Warns Against Using Home HIV, Pregnancy Tests Sold Over Internet

on Monday warned against using HIV and pregnancy home diagnostic tests being sold over the Internet by a Canadian manufacturer that offers delivery in the United States, the AP/USA Today reports. FDA has not approved any products made by the Montreal-based company Globus Media, therefore "consumers cannot know with any degree of certainty that test results are correct," according to an FDA release, the AP/USA Today reports. FDA learned that the tests were being sold illegally in the United States when it received a consumer complaint about false-positives for the HIV test and questions as to whether a syphilis home test was FDA-approved (AP/USA Today, 2/8). Web sites selling the home tests include htkit.com and hstkits.com, according to Dow Jones News Service. FDA said that customers who have the home tests should not use them and those who have used them should be retested using FDA-approved kits (Dow Jones News Service, 2/7). FDA has approved one HIV diagnostic home collection kit, which is available commercially in the United States. The blood sample collected using the kit is mailed to a laboratory for testing and confirmation, according to the release (FDA release, 2/7).

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