confused

[justpeedmypants]

i would like to thank everyone on this forum, i have been reading many threads and i gained lots of knowledge from it.
i read as much as possible to avoid asking a question that has already been answered but i couldn't find a similar situation

I've been nauseous getting pain in my elbows, wrists and to right side of my belly button after an exposure that involved blood, i know that if someone is infected with hiv and hepatitis c at the same time then the hiv antibodies might take longer than 3 months to be detected, and i know that only happens if somebody is already ill from hepatitis c, my question is can somebody be ill from acute hepatitis c and still test negative for hcv antibodies? since i'm already having symptoms, does it mean i will test positive for hepatitis c (assuming the symptoms are hepatitis related) or can somebody be ill from it and still test negative? in another word, if hcv symptoms appear does it mean hcv antibodies will be detectable too ? or is it going to take 3 months or more to be detected regardless?
and if the answer is yes then does that mean the symptoms i have are not hcv related?

thanks in advance

[justpeedmypants]

Thank you so much for your answers gentlemen,

I went to see the doctor and actually his answers were kinda strange, he said hepatitis test will detect any infection and if you take it and it's negative then you don't need to take it again period. and he recommend to take hiv test after 6 months and then 1 year...... i thought the 3 months test was conclusive!!
I didn't take any test as hepatitis is pretty expensive and i can't afford to take it twice so i'm just going to wait a few months i guess since he didn't convinced me with his answers....

[Dee1956]

Hello the doctor gave you excellent advice.  Of course without knowing your entire history it is difficult to answer questions however I would like to say that I contracted HCV in 1977 yet when I was tested in 1994 it came back negative so I had a false negative which impacted my life most negatively.
I hope you have not contracted Hep B. I would wait 6 months and get tested again if I were you.  Again, the doctor gave great advice so I would follow what he advised
Good luck to you

[Arti Sharma, M.D.]

Hi there,
There are two ways you can determine whether you have hepatitis C infection or not. It can be through antibody test or PCR test. The antibody test takes some time to become positive may be a few months. If you have had symptoms, or have been exposed to hepatitis C it is suggested to take the test again. A positive test means you have been infected at some stage. You may be currently infected or might have cleared the virus from your body.PCR test can help in detecting whether you are currently infected or not. Consult a healthcare professional. He may further refer you to a hepatologist if needed. Keep me posted.
Best luck and regards!