Drawbacks and Merits of Home AIDS Test Told

Public health officials said Thursday that proposed home testing for AIDS could do more harm than good because users would not be psychologically prepared to deal with the knowledge that they had contracted the disease.

Proponents, however, argued that telephone counseling would be adequate to help AIDS victims cope with the trauma of a positive test result, rejecting claims that intensive face-to-face counseling is required.

With a typical home test, a user would draw blood from a finger with a lancet. The blood would be transferred to a piece of absorbent paper, which would be mailed to a laboratory. The user would later telephone the laboratory to receive the test results and counseling.

So far, the Food and Drug Administration has refused to allow manufacturers to market home tests for the AIDS antibody.

During a daylong hearing sponsored by the agency, a number of health officials contended that face-to-face counseling is superior to telephone counseling because it allows the observation of body and facial gestures and is more comprehensive in scope.