Aa
Doctor, kindly please, answer to my misery so I can get my life back!
Dear Doctor:
Recently I have receive your kind answer of which I learned that there is noting to be concerned of as far as HIV-2 in my case after 25 years from one possible white female sexual contact in the U.S.A. being healthy and with two separate lab based negative results on Elisa done after couple years from such contact (in 1988 & 1989). As I said, I am healthy and have nice family. Thank you for that assuring answer.
However, anxiety quite often is a nasty thing and does not want to listen to a reason or logics. That fear kind of blurs you actual inner vision and deprives you of some necessary distance to that particular issue. The more you resist the more anxious you become. Sort of like a vicious circle that you are in. So, I need to face it and test on HIV-1/HIV-2 combo Elisa. Particularly I am so afraid of false positive results to face it , I heard that HIV-2 has not any approved confirmatory Western Blot test in the U.S.A., minimizing possible false positive results and bringing specificity way up to compare it with HIV-1. Therefore, let me ask you:
1. What are the chances of such scenario being false positive/ inconclusive in my case (no recent vaccines, no known disease, none of exposures)? – With Western Blot available for HIV-1 there is pretty assurance before it leaves the lab, but what about in case of HIV-2? Did you have any cases like that often?
2. How any possible false positive (on HIV-2 with that HIV-1/HIV-2 combo) would usually be confirmed by lab before I get my results, or perhaps they will just leave me with some inconclusive result to worry?
3. If they would, so what test/s I could follow up with to resolve it immediately?
4. Could PEP (vaccination and immune globulin) received almost 3 years ago due to some bad accident with a dog cause the test now to be false positive?
5. would you say Doctor that with 25 years I would be somewhere on the top when considering long incubation for HIV-2? - Respectfully yours, Rysiek.
Recently I have receive your kind answer of which I learned that there is noting to be concerned of as far as HIV-2 in my case after 25 years from one possible white female sexual contact in the U.S.A. being healthy and with two separate lab based negative results on Elisa done after couple years from such contact (in 1988 & 1989). As I said, I am healthy and have nice family. Thank you for that assuring answer.
However, anxiety quite often is a nasty thing and does not want to listen to a reason or logics. That fear kind of blurs you actual inner vision and deprives you of some necessary distance to that particular issue. The more you resist the more anxious you become. Sort of like a vicious circle that you are in. So, I need to face it and test on HIV-1/HIV-2 combo Elisa. Particularly I am so afraid of false positive results to face it , I heard that HIV-2 has not any approved confirmatory Western Blot test in the U.S.A., minimizing possible false positive results and bringing specificity way up to compare it with HIV-1. Therefore, let me ask you:
1. What are the chances of such scenario being false positive/ inconclusive in my case (no recent vaccines, no known disease, none of exposures)? – With Western Blot available for HIV-1 there is pretty assurance before it leaves the lab, but what about in case of HIV-2? Did you have any cases like that often?
2. How any possible false positive (on HIV-2 with that HIV-1/HIV-2 combo) would usually be confirmed by lab before I get my results, or perhaps they will just leave me with some inconclusive result to worry?
3. If they would, so what test/s I could follow up with to resolve it immediately?
4. Could PEP (vaccination and immune globulin) received almost 3 years ago due to some bad accident with a dog cause the test now to be false positive?
5. would you say Doctor that with 25 years I would be somewhere on the top when considering long incubation for HIV-2? - Respectfully yours, Rysiek.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Hello Rysiek,
Thank you very much for your new post. I honestly do not beleive that you need to worry so much as I am convinced that you are absolutely fine. You do not need to worry about HIV-2 as it is extremely rare, simply because it is less infectious and less likely to be transmitted, that is why it is so rare. Regarding your questions, I am going to answer them here as follows:
1. What are the chances of such scenario being false positive/ inconclusive in my case (no recent vaccines, no known disease, none of exposures)? – With Western Blot available for HIV-1 there is pretty assurance before it leaves the lab, but what about in case of HIV-2? Did you have any cases like that often?
FALSE POSITIVES HAPPEN IN EXTREMELY RARE OCCASSIONS WITH HIV-1 AND A CONFIRMATORY WESTERN BLOT WOULD CONFIRM THAT ONE WAY OR ANOTHER ON THE SAME DAY; NO CASES OF FALSE POSITIVES FOR HIV-2 THAT I KNOW OF. HOWEVER THERE IS CERTAINLY A WESTERN BLOT FOR HIV-2 ALSO
2. How any possible false positive (on HIV-2 with that HIV-1/HIV-2 combo) would usually be confirmed by lab before I get my results, or perhaps they will just leave me with some inconclusive result to worry?
MOST LABS WOULD PERFORM 3 DIFFERENT CONFIRMATORY TESTS OF DIFFERENT TYPES INCLUDING A WESTERN BLOT FOR BOTH HIV1 AND 2, AND YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE AN INCLONCLUSIVE RESULT, DEFINITELY NOT AFTER 25 YEARS.
3. If they would, so what test/s I could follow up with to resolve it immediately?
NO NEED TO WORRY ABOUT THAT AS THE LAB WILL DO IT AUTOMATICALLY
4. Could PEP (vaccination and immune globulin) received almost 3 years ago due to some bad accident with a dog cause the test now to be false positive?
NOT AT ALL.
5. would you say Doctor that with 25 years I would be somewhere on the top when considering long incubation for HIV-2?
THERE IS NO SUCH LONG INCUBATION FOR HIV. A TEST RESULT AFTER 25 YEARS WILL BE FULLY CONCLUSIVE. IF YOU HAD BEEN INFECTED 25 YEARS AGO, YOU WOULD HAVE DEVELOP SOME PROBLEMS BY NOW. NO NEED TO WORRY. YOU NEED TO HAVE THE TEST WHICH WILL BE NEGATIVE AND THEN YOU CAN MOVE ON AND FORGET ABOU THE WHOLE THING.
Best wishes,
Dr Jose
Thank you very much for your new post. I honestly do not beleive that you need to worry so much as I am convinced that you are absolutely fine. You do not need to worry about HIV-2 as it is extremely rare, simply because it is less infectious and less likely to be transmitted, that is why it is so rare. Regarding your questions, I am going to answer them here as follows:
1. What are the chances of such scenario being false positive/ inconclusive in my case (no recent vaccines, no known disease, none of exposures)? – With Western Blot available for HIV-1 there is pretty assurance before it leaves the lab, but what about in case of HIV-2? Did you have any cases like that often?
FALSE POSITIVES HAPPEN IN EXTREMELY RARE OCCASSIONS WITH HIV-1 AND A CONFIRMATORY WESTERN BLOT WOULD CONFIRM THAT ONE WAY OR ANOTHER ON THE SAME DAY; NO CASES OF FALSE POSITIVES FOR HIV-2 THAT I KNOW OF. HOWEVER THERE IS CERTAINLY A WESTERN BLOT FOR HIV-2 ALSO
2. How any possible false positive (on HIV-2 with that HIV-1/HIV-2 combo) would usually be confirmed by lab before I get my results, or perhaps they will just leave me with some inconclusive result to worry?
MOST LABS WOULD PERFORM 3 DIFFERENT CONFIRMATORY TESTS OF DIFFERENT TYPES INCLUDING A WESTERN BLOT FOR BOTH HIV1 AND 2, AND YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE AN INCLONCLUSIVE RESULT, DEFINITELY NOT AFTER 25 YEARS.
3. If they would, so what test/s I could follow up with to resolve it immediately?
NO NEED TO WORRY ABOUT THAT AS THE LAB WILL DO IT AUTOMATICALLY
4. Could PEP (vaccination and immune globulin) received almost 3 years ago due to some bad accident with a dog cause the test now to be false positive?
NOT AT ALL.
5. would you say Doctor that with 25 years I would be somewhere on the top when considering long incubation for HIV-2?
THERE IS NO SUCH LONG INCUBATION FOR HIV. A TEST RESULT AFTER 25 YEARS WILL BE FULLY CONCLUSIVE. IF YOU HAD BEEN INFECTED 25 YEARS AGO, YOU WOULD HAVE DEVELOP SOME PROBLEMS BY NOW. NO NEED TO WORRY. YOU NEED TO HAVE THE TEST WHICH WILL BE NEGATIVE AND THEN YOU CAN MOVE ON AND FORGET ABOU THE WHOLE THING.
Best wishes,
Dr Jose
Hello Doctor:
Thank you so much. I was hoping you would answer. It was important to me. Yes, I am sure you are not only a doctor, but also person of high integrity and empaty. It is not so easy to put up with all this here, but it is all for higher purpose!
God Bless You.
Rysiek.
Thank you so much. I was hoping you would answer. It was important to me. Yes, I am sure you are not only a doctor, but also person of high integrity and empaty. It is not so easy to put up with all this here, but it is all for higher purpose!
God Bless You.
Rysiek.
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