Calypte introduces over-the-counter rapid oral HIV test
Calypte Biomedical Corporation, a US-based developer of diagnostic tests for sexually transmitted diseases, has introduced an otc version of the Aware Oral Fluid HIV-1/2 Rapid Diagnostic Test. It plans initially to sell the product in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and then to distribute it throughout the entire Middle East.
Calypte Biomedical Corporation, a US-based developer of diagnostic tests for sexually transmitted diseases, has introduced an otc version of the Aware Oral Fluid HIV-1/2 Rapid Diagnostic Test. It plans initially to sell the product in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and then to distribute it throughout the entire Middle East.
The test is being distributed by Joseph and Gionis, a global biotechnology distribution company with offices in Newport Beach, California and in the UAE, which is Calypte's exclusive Middle Eastern distributor.
According to the December 2004 UNAIDS report, there are between 230,000 and 1.5 million adults and children living with HIV within this region, of which nearly half are women.
Roger Gale, chairman and ceo of Calypte said: 'We believe that this product will add another tool to increase detection and combat the spread of HIV virus and that the combination of an otc product with safe, oral fluid detection is well suited to reach the greatest number of individuals within the Middle Eastern coun-tries.