Self-Test

As the name suggests, self-test kits help you test some disease or ailment all by yourself. It gives you the result in minutes and saves you from travelling to the hospital and paying the exorbitant bills. However, not all kinds of illnesses can be self-tested. Let us explore in detail.

Past some years have given people easy access to self-testing kits that help them diagnose diseases independently. These test kits are available online or in pharmacies and can be performed without input from a health professional. However, the samples taken at home are processed in the home, or one has to send it to a lab for actual diagnosis and take the information regarding the risk of disease. It is based upon the type of kit you have got, basically! Some commonly sold self-test kits include self-blood test, pregnancy test, STD self-test kit, a kit for an alcohol test, allergy test, blood sugar test, celiac test, and many more. However, whether they are completely reliable or not is still a topic of debate. We will explore more to find out their types and more crucial things related to them on this page.

Things you need to know about self-test kits

Self-test kits usually involve taking your own sample, readings and interpreting the result. The kits come with instructions and procedures to do the test. However, they come in a variety of options. For example, in HIV self-testing, with some kits, you have to use a lancet to release a little quantity of blood from a finger prick. In contrast, others may require a sample of oral fluid generally obtained by swabbing a pad around the outer gums. To an extent, these test kits are helpful as they help you test in your own time and, most importantly, in the privacy of your home. However, their reliability depends upon the kit you bring. National authority’s licenses are reliable, but on rare occasions, they may give you a false result. Continue reading to know about various self-test kits in detail.

HIV home test

Knowing your HIV status is a good way to keep yourself and others healthy. HIV home testing kits allow you to do the test in the comfort of your home. There are two kinds of test kits you can find. HIV postal test refers to taking the same blood or saliva yourself and sending it to the laboratory. Another one is when you take the sample yourself and receive the result at the same time. In this case, you do not have to send the sample to any lab or hospital. Speaking of their genuineness, the licensed test kits approved by national authorities are reliable. But sometimes, they may produce a false result. It means giving you a positive even if you are negative or vice versa.

STI self-test kit

Anyone can get their test done for any STI such as HIV from some lab or local sexual health clinic. However, some people go for self-test kits that are available online and in pharmacies. Some popular examples include home testing kits for infections like chlamydia and Gonorrhoea that you can send to a laboratory for final results. In some locations, people under 25 can get free kits for chlamydia. Some pharmacies provide the testing services, whereas others may also provide the treatment. If you think you are suffering from STI, then the first important thing is to self-test it or go to a lab for a test and get medical advice to start the treatment as soon as possible.

Pregnancy test kit

Pregnancy test kits are one of the popular ways of finding out whether you are pregnant or not. The trustworthy over-the-counter urine pregnancy test kits are accurate 99% of the time. However, it should be followed by a test performed by a health care professional in a clinic or hospital. The pregnancy test kit can detect the hCG in your urine. Some kits are more sensitive than others. However, many of them successfully detect the hCG between the fourth and fifth week of pregnancy. While usage, one should follow the instructions carefully to get the best results. A lot of brands offer these kits, and many of them are reliable too.