Confused ???

A family member of mine recently tested positive for HIV.  He has been married for about 8 years and his wife was also tested but was negative.  Can this be possible?  Any advice is greatly appreaciated.

[CB1989]

prolly cheated and didnt tell anyone..

[CB1989]

maybe it was a false postive. idk how they could have sex all this time and she came out negative... so he prolly cheated or something and is afraid to confess

[Lele3257]

If this was the case wouldn't she test positive as well?  Since he according to the doctors has been showing symptoms for the past year and he & his wife have had sexual intercourse since then.  Thanks!

[CB1989]

well the symtomes he had could have been a common flu, he might have contracted it sooner, who knows, but what is his wife going to do?

[Lele3257]

Stand by him. He has been really good to her and he has yet to go to the specialist. So we don't know for sure what is going on.  We are hoping that his tests were wrong.  And if not we will support him.  Any suggestions?  Could it be a false-positive? What else could it be?  Can any medications or other things cause the tests to be wrong?

[CB1989]

well if hes been good to her and he hasnt shared needles with anyone then idk, hopefully it will be false, u guys should pray for him

[CB1989]

its just that idk how they have sex together but the wife didnt chance anything, unless they use protection which i they might, who knows

[kpelych19602]

You don't always get HIV, even if exposed.  Look at Magic and Cookie Johnson...

[Lele3257]

That is what I was thinking as well. I just need some guidance, I guess

[joggen]

The risk of transmission from male to female is 1:1000 acts of vaginal sex. It is possible to have sex for several months, or even years, with an HIV positive partner and not get infected.

However, your family member is not HIV positive until he has had a positive result on a Western Blot. If his positive result was from an ELISA test, then he needs the WB done for confirmation as the ELISA is just a screening test.

[Lele3257]

If the Western Blot is positive, does this mean he is HIV positive? Is there any possibility of error in this test? He has had the same sex partner for 8 years now. Thanks!

[joggen]

Yes, a positive result on a Western indicates HIV infection. There are almost never false positives on this test, as it looks for the presence of multiple antibodies against HIV in the serum. It is the gold standard for testing.

[joggen]

"A -ve result in ELISA test is reliable ?"
    Yes, at the appropriate time

" Even then should we try with western blot?"
     NO.