Cheaper local AIDS test method studied

JAKARTA (JP): The government is currently studying whether a new, cheaper method of testing AIDS meets international standards.

Minister of Health Sujudi said yesterday that the government will move cautiously before endorsing the locally-developed "entebe dip-stick" method to test for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

"If a person's test should turn up positive through an error, then it will be a disaster because he will bear the great social consequences of such a result.

"On the other hand, if through an error a negative result is obtained, then it will be a tragedy also," Sujudi stated.

"The people who have developed the method say it meets international standards. But we still have to confirm this," Sujudi said after receiving medical aids for victims of tidal waves in East Java from the management of TEMPO groups, which is active in pharmaceutical products.

Developed by Hepatika laboratory in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, which has been appointed as the center of vaccine- related research in Indonesia, the new method has been sent to the World Health Organization for approval.

It uses polystyrene sticks with antigen tips which are dipped into the blood for testing.

Sujudi admitted that this method is cheaper than the Western blot method, which is recognized by WHO and used in many countries, including Indonesia. "For us, the blot method is quite expensive. So, we welcome this new method, especially since it is developed by our own people. But before we apply it, we have to make sure it is reliable."

One bottle of reactant for Western blot, which is sufficient for 10 tests, costs some Rp 1.5 million (US$700). (11)