Limburg4Zero: order your online self-sampling testkit here
Are you a man who has (also) sex with men? Do you live in the province of Limburg (the Netherlands)? Request your self-sampling test here! With this testkit you can check yourself for infections that are transmissible through sex.
This self-sampling testkit is offered to you by the Centres of Sexual Health in Limburg. It allows you to test for STIs and HIV confidentially and discreetly, in the comfort of your own home. Would you rather have a test at one of our locations? Click here to make an appointment.
Want to order yourself a sampling test? Click here
Who can request a self-sampling test kit?
Who can request a self-sampling test kit?
Would you like to request a self-sampling test kit? You can request it through Limburg4Zero if you:
- live in the province of Limburg (NL)
- are a man and have sex or (ever) have had sex with men
- are transgender and have or (ever) have had sex with men
If you are HIV positive you can currently not be tested at home yet. This also applies to PrEP users. You can make an appointment at the Public Health Service (GGD) for free STI testing.
If you ever had syphilis, you will be invited for a consultation at the GGD after the self-sampling test.
Unfortunately, the self-sampling test for syphilis cannot distinguish between a treated syphilis infection and a new syphilis infection. Therefore, you will be invited for further testing. You can also make an appointment at your GGD right away.
How does the self-sampling testkit work?
Once you have completed the questionnaire online, the test kit will be sent to the address provided. This can take 1 to maximum 3 working days. The kit is delivered in an anonymous package and fits through the mailbox. So, you do not have to stay at home to receive it!
Please read the instructions carefully before you start testing or watch the instruction video here. It does not matter in which order you perform the tests, as long as you perform them one by one.
Click here to read the information letter you receive with the package.
The package contains the following tests:
- Urine test (pdf) (pipette and tube with yellow sticker)
- Throat test (pdf) (cotton swab and tube with green sticker)
- Anal test (pdf) (swab and tube with blue sticker)
- Blood test (pdf) (bag with red sticker)
Are not all tests in the package, is the package damaged or are there other questions about the contents of the package?
Send an e-mail to: limburg4zero@ggdzl.nl.
Call the general number of the STI clinic of your GGD
Frequently asked questions and answers
- When to test?
An STI test is reliable if you take the test after the window phase. By window phase we mean the time between the moment of contamination (the unsafe sex contact) and the ability to demonstrate the contamination with a laboratory test.
If you do an STI test after the window phase the test can determine with certainty whether you have contracted an infection or not.
Infectious Disease Window phase (test reliably after this period) Chlamydia 14 days Gonorrhoea 14 days
Syphilis 3 months Hepatitis B 3 months HIV ** 3 months **Please note! Have you been warned about HIV? Then contact us immediately. See also PEP treatment.
- How often a year can I test?
We can offer you a check-up once a year through the GGD. Also not more than once a year.
If you have any symptoms, have been warned about an STI, or have had condom failure, it is important that you take an (additional) STI test. Contact the GGD for this, even if you have already had one check-up.
If you request a package via Limburg4zero, this will go through the same GGD clinic where you come for your regular STI testing. Again, you cannot request a package more than once a year. If you have already had your check-up at the clinic, you can no longer request a package.
You cannot order a package in advance for the future. If you request a package, you are expected to return it within 2 weeks.
- What STIs are tested for?
In the self-sampling test kit are several tests which test for:
- Chlamydia (oral, genital, anal)
- Gonorrhoea (oral, genital, anal)
- Syphilis
- HIV
Would you like to be tested for other STIs as well, such as Hepatitis B or C? Then make an appointment for a free STI test at your GGD.
- When should I return the test?
We advise you to send in the samples on the same day that you took them. The samples are perishable.
Sampling done? Send them in on the same day! Preferably test from Monday to Wednesday.
Preferably not at the beginning of the weekend or on a holiday. The package then takes longer to reach us, and the quality of the tests is reduced. Take the samples within a week after receiving the self-sampling test kit. We will send a reminder after about 8 days if we have not received any materials back.
- What do I need to think about when I return the materials?
Have you done all the samples? Did you put them in the safety bag and close this bag?
Do not forget to fill in the date.
Fill in the date on the sticker on the inside of the box. Fill in the date on which you took the samples. For example, did you take the tests yesterday and send them in today? Fill in yesterday's date.
Put the safety bag in the box.
There is a return address on the box so that the box can be returned to us. Is the box a little torn? Then seal the box with tape. Make sure that the reply number remains visible. Send the box by putting it in a mailbox, for example an orange PostNL mailbox in your area. A stamp is not necessary!
Keep the information letter!
On the information letter you will find a sticker with a code with which we can trace back the samples you have taken. If you contact us with questions about the content of the test, you will be asked for this personal code.
- When will I receive my results?
You will receive your results within 3 weeks.
Are all your results good?
Then you will receive a message from us via SMS, email or phone. You can indicate your preference when you register.
If you have an STI,
the GGD will always contact you by phone. In consultation with you, an appointment will be made at the GGD for further explanation and treatment.
Often, an STI is easy to treat. For chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis, you will be given antibiotics and your symptoms will usually disappear quickly.
Are you receiving the right treatment? Then you cannot pass on HIV to others. You can get medications that ensure that you do not get complaints from HIV. You cannot be cured from HIV. On https://www.soaaids.nl/en you can read which treatment is available for each STI.
Have you not received your results after 3 weeks?
Contact the call centre of the STI clinic of your GGD. Have your personal code ready when you talk to a staff member, they might ask you for it.
Contact information
Do you have questions about the self-sampling test kit?
Is your question not listed here or do you have other questions? Please contact the STI clinic of your Public Health Service (GGD):
GGD South Limburg:
T 088-880 50 72 (Mon-Fri from 08.00-12.15; Mon and Wed 13.30-15.30)
GGD Limburg North:
T 088 - 119 1200 - choice 4 (Mon-Fri from 09.00-12.30)
Privacy
In order to carry out these tasks as well as possible, we may need personal information from you, such as your name, address, place of residence and telephone number. We keep this data in a (electronic) file, together with other information that the GGD has about you. Only the care providers involved have access to this file. They will handle it with care and are bound by confidentiality.
The GGD will never share information such as tests, results, treatment, etc. with third parties (such as your family doctor or health insurance company) without your permission. Tests and possible treatment are free of charge.
