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Are my test conclusive?
Hello doctor I am a male who had sex with another male and I was the bottom partner and we did use condoms but one condom failed so I immediately got scared and got tested for hiv and all stds. I began having symptoms about 2 days after the incident such as stomach rumble and headache and I also had a loss of appetite. These symptoms have been going on for about 5-6 weeks already. I recieved a negative result on the 4th generation duo ab/ab at 3 weeks and also a negative result on the same test at about 45 days. I wanted to move on with my life but yesterday I started having night sweats which has me terrified doctor. What do you think of my negative results as I have heard that the duo test is conclusive at 4 weeks and I took it at 3 weeks and 6 weeks. Should I test again because of the night sweats that I am having?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
The duo test is 100% reliable any time 4 or more weeks after exposure. Somehting other than HIV explains your night sweats and any other symptoms you have now or may develop. I would stake my career and personal integrity on it. See a doctor to figure out the cause, but you can stop worrying about HIV.
This is the most useful explanation for the window period (4 weeks or more) of the 4th generation HIV Ag/Ab combo test that will clear all doubts anyone might have regarding the combo test.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
This has been explained before -- but this time I'm going to bookmark this thread so I can refer questions to it and won't have to keep repeating myself!
Many people misunderstand the duo (4th generation) HIV test. It might seem that after the period in which p24 antigen can no longer be detected in the blood (around 4-6 weeks), the test behaves just like a stand-alone antibody test. This would seem to leave open a possibility that after p24 antigen disappears, there could be brief time before antibody shows up, and therefore a possible false negative test result.
But it doesn’t work that way. The tests for HIV antibody and p24 antigen that are incorporated into the duo test are not independent of one another. It is the HIV antibody that clears p24 out of the blood. If p24 antigen is no longer detectable, then antibody MUST be present -- that's the very reason that p24 is gone. Therefore, in every person with an HIV infection of 4 or more weeks induration, either antibody or p24 is always detectable in the blood. (Both may be present for a couple of weeks in the 2-6 week time frame.)
So your negative result is definitive. Don’t have any more HIV tests. Do your best to move on. This thread is over.
Many people misunderstand the duo (4th generation) HIV test. It might seem that after the period in which p24 antigen can no longer be detected in the blood (around 4-6 weeks), the test behaves just like a stand-alone antibody test. This would seem to leave open a possibility that after p24 antigen disappears, there could be brief time before antibody shows up, and therefore a possible false negative test result.
But it doesn’t work that way. The tests for HIV antibody and p24 antigen that are incorporated into the duo test are not independent of one another. It is the HIV antibody that clears p24 out of the blood. If p24 antigen is no longer detectable, then antibody MUST be present -- that's the very reason that p24 is gone. Therefore, in every person with an HIV infection of 4 or more weeks induration, either antibody or p24 is always detectable in the blood. (Both may be present for a couple of weeks in the 2-6 week time frame.)
So your negative result is definitive. Don’t have any more HIV tests. Do your best to move on. This thread is over.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome to the forum.
I'm sorry you're having such a difficult time in understanding, believing, and accepting the accurate replies you had on the community forum.
The HIV blood tests are probably the most accurate diagnostic tests ever developed, for any medical condition. As long as testing is done sufficiently long after the last possible exposure (for the duo test, any time more than 4 weeks, as you already seem to know), the results overrule all other considerations. No matter how high your risk might have seemed at the time, and no matter what symptoms there are, the test results rule. Your results -- multiple times -- prove that you do not have HIV.
And your symptoms really are not particularly suspicious for HIV anyway. I'm not sure what sort of "night sweats" you have had, but true night sweats are the result of high fever suddenly going away during the night. If you're not having fever during the day, you're not having true night sweats. And even if you were, night sweats can occur with any condition that causes fever -- i.e. hundreds of medical problems in addition to HIV.
So you can be sure you don't have HIV. You don't need any more tests. If you're not under a doctor's care to figure out the cause of your symptoms, I would recommend you make an appointment for professional evaluation. Whatever the explanation, though, it is not HIV and probably nas nothing to do at all with your sexual exposure a efew weeks ago.
I hope this has helped. Happy holidays-- HHH, MD
I'm sorry you're having such a difficult time in understanding, believing, and accepting the accurate replies you had on the community forum.
The HIV blood tests are probably the most accurate diagnostic tests ever developed, for any medical condition. As long as testing is done sufficiently long after the last possible exposure (for the duo test, any time more than 4 weeks, as you already seem to know), the results overrule all other considerations. No matter how high your risk might have seemed at the time, and no matter what symptoms there are, the test results rule. Your results -- multiple times -- prove that you do not have HIV.
And your symptoms really are not particularly suspicious for HIV anyway. I'm not sure what sort of "night sweats" you have had, but true night sweats are the result of high fever suddenly going away during the night. If you're not having fever during the day, you're not having true night sweats. And even if you were, night sweats can occur with any condition that causes fever -- i.e. hundreds of medical problems in addition to HIV.
So you can be sure you don't have HIV. You don't need any more tests. If you're not under a doctor's care to figure out the cause of your symptoms, I would recommend you make an appointment for professional evaluation. Whatever the explanation, though, it is not HIV and probably nas nothing to do at all with your sexual exposure a efew weeks ago.
I hope this has helped. Happy holidays-- HHH, MD
A related discussion, Testing Accuracy was started.
A related discussion, I really need answer was started.
A related discussion, HIV combi PT test after 26 days was started.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Nobody ever needs HIV testing after an oral sex exposure, since HIV is rarely if ever transmitted by oral sex, especially from the oral to penile partner. Therefore, the interval from exposure to testing doesn't matter.
This thread is now over for sure.
This thread is now over for sure.
Hello doctor I hope that you can answer this question because it is a quick question and a concern for me. 4 weeks after our sex encounter I met up with that guy and he tested negative on an oraquick oral swab test but he also gave me oral sex for like 1 or 2 minutes before I stopped him. So the duo test at 6 weeks from my first encounter was only 17 days from our oral sex encounter and today I took an oraquick at home at 12 weeks and it is negative and this is 12 weeks from our original encounter and only 8 weeks from our oral sex encounter where I recieved oral sex from him. Do you think I should test again after 12 weeks from our oral sex encounter? I really hope that you reply because this is my last question and I really don't want to pay another 20 dollars to ask this question if you could just answer it here.
Thank you for making this clear to me doctor and I really appreciate your knowledge.
Hello doctor and I'm sorry if My question is dumb or unreasonable for you to answer but this is a real question that I have about the 4th generation ag/ab test. I had my test done at 45 days after possible exposure and I have read that on the community forum that Teak and others state that the antigen part of this test is only detectable the first 3-4 weeks. I saw that teak told somebody on the community forum that their 6 week 4th generation test was useless for the antigen part and only good for the antibody part. From your opinion is this correct or not doctor. Could you explain me if the antigen really disappears after the first few weeks as Teak states. Let me know if I have to pay a fee again as I will if I have to because this is a real question and concern for me because I would assume that Teak would agree with you but that is just not the case.
I'm sorry that I have annoyed you doctor and I do appreciate all your comments and your knowledgable comments. Thank you Dr. Handsfield
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
What do I have to do to make you listen to reason and to the science-based reassurance I have tried to give?? You are far, far too laser-beam focused on minor symptoms that occur all the time in healthy people and those with trivial illnesses. White coated tongue is not even a remote concern for HIV or other STDs.
Accept my reassurance or not, I don't care any more; but this isn't a debate. Re-read all my replies above and concentrate this time. Any more such comments will result in immediate deletion of this entire thread.
Accept my reassurance or not, I don't care any more; but this isn't a debate. Re-read all my replies above and concentrate this time. Any more such comments will result in immediate deletion of this entire thread.
Hello doctor I forgot to tell you that my tongue is white and this also has me scared. Over the weeks the whiteness on the tongue has spread and now almost covers my entire tongue. I just wanted to tell you so I can get your opinion on whether this could be hiv related.
Okay I appreciate your advice doctor. I will speak to my doctor to find out wat is causing my symptoms. Thank you for your help doctor and happy holidays to you.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Your syphilis blood test is conclusive. If your gonorrhea/chlamydia test was done on urine or a urethral swab, the negative result is reliable. However, it was your rectum that was exposed; a rectal swab test is necessary to assure you didn't catch chlamydia or gonorrhea.
I stress again that your symptoms are definitely not due to these or any other STD. I do not recommend any other STD testing of any kind.
I stress again that your symptoms are definitely not due to these or any other STD. I do not recommend any other STD testing of any kind.
Okay I understand doctor and are my results for the other stds conclusive at 6 weeks as well? Do you recommend that I test for other stds besides these?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Since this forum is limited to HIV and other STDs, we don't speculate about causes of symptoms once these have been reliably ruled out. For sure no STD causes such symptoms, and whenever someone suggests his or her own symptoms may have an emotional or psychological origin (anxiety, stress, etc), usually s/he is correct.
I am confident your symptoms are not due to any infection from the sexual exposure you are worried about. If they are related to that event, it is through anxiety about it. As I noted above, see a doctor to sort this out -- but we've gone as far as we can on this forum.
I am confident your symptoms are not due to any infection from the sexual exposure you are worried about. If they are related to that event, it is through anxiety about it. As I noted above, see a doctor to sort this out -- but we've gone as far as we can on this forum.
Do you bel olive that stress might have caused my night sweat as I have been feeling stressed and also having anxiety. I will believe in your expertise doctor and will forget about hiv no matter wat symptom I get because my test are conclusive as you say so something else is the culprit. I also have another question if u don't mind doctor. Do you know if any other std can cause this as I tested for syphillis, chlamadia, ghonorea. Would you recommend testing for other stds for my situation. And I tested for all these stds at the 6 week mark. Also for chlamadia and ghonorea is a urine test good enough or is a swab better?
I don't recall having any fever during the day but yesterday night I woke up soaked in sweat and this was 2days after my 6 week negative duo test. Do you find this odd doctor? These night sweats have me really scared doctor as it just happened yesterday night and hopefully won't happen again. Knowing that these night sweats started after I was tested at the 6 week mark you don't recommend any more testing? How accurate is the duo test at 6 weeks doctor?
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