FDA Approves New HIV Test

The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new test that can detect HIV type 1 and type 2. This is according to the Associated Press.

The maker of the test is Abbott Laboratories Prism system based in North Chicago, Illinois. HIV type 1 is made up of subgroups found in the U.S. and West Africa. HIV type 2 is found mostly in West Africa. The new test will be used to screen HIV in blood and organ donations. HIV AIDS has taken many lives in parts of Africa and has left many children as orphans. The Centers for Disease and Prevention (CDC) reports that over 1.1 million Americans have HIV and 232,000 don't know they have it. Hopefully, this will get people to take the test. HIV has been known to the medical field for close to thirty years. Although there are drugs available for people with HIV, there is still no cure for the disease.