False-Positive

[scaredwifeinny]

My husband and I are going through infertility treatment.  He went in a few weeks ago to have the blood checklist for IVF and my doctor called on Friday to tell us that he's tested positive for the antibodies to Hepatitis C.  My husband has never used illegal drugs, no tattoos, no blood transfusions and was vigilant about protected sex.  So... since we haven't been in to see another doctor for follow-up tests, what are the rates of false-positive in this sort of population?  We are understandably devastated and just need to know more information.  Thanks!

[Nervous_2016]

my dr recently told me that I had a weak  but postitive result for hepatitis. but couldn't tell me for sure just the I was postitive for something??? I am a nervous wreck.

[Nervous_2016]

my dr recently told me that I had a weak  but postitive result for hepatitis. but couldn't tell me for sure just the I was postitive for something??? I am a nervous wreck.

[Rencane]

Hi. Reading your shares really helped me a lot. I had undergone a blood test a couple of weeks ago and it yielded a Hep C: 1.93 reactive result. I was then retested a week after and it still shows the same result. However i hadn't had the chance to ask if they ran the same type of test during my retest. I am scheduled to do a PCR in a couple of days time. Hopefully by God's will it will give a good result....Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience about this.

[Diane12855]

You posted at the bottom of a very old thread, so lots of people won't even read to the bottom to see your question. It is much better to scroll to the top of the page and click on the "post a question" button. Then your question will appear at the top of the list and get seen by everybody.

The above posts pretty much answer your question, by the way,

Diane

[tnConcerned1978]

I went and donated blood last month and I got a letter today that said I was reactive for the HCV AB test and Negative on the other 2 test... What are the chances that this Could that be a false positive?

[Jakied]

Your 'weak pos' probably means a signal of <3 on the screening test.  Ask for the 'Riba' confirmatory antibody test.  Riba is 'Recombinant ImmunoBlot Assay.'  this is VERY specific for the hep c antibody.  Your neg pcr means you are virus free.  A neg riba would mean you are antibody free, also.  A pos Riba  means previous infection and clearence, meaning you have Hcv antibody in your bloodstream and will probably have them for the rest of your life.

Having antibody only is NOT terrible but you cannot donate blood and obtaining life ins or health ins may be a problem.

Most 'weak pos' results on the screening test are neg on the Riba test.

[alfeezy]

please note that i have gone through hcv antibodies and the result was cut off one month back then i have checked the pcr and the result was negative, but when i repeat the hcv antibodies after a month from the first test again i got weak positive, my question is this weak positive will remain always when i take this test or may be it may be changed in future

[debnevada]

come back and let us know when you are in "the family way"

[jmjm530]

Glad we could be of some help here and that it all had a happy ending. All the best with your infertility treatments.

-- Jim

[scaredwifeinny]

Thanks so much.  Now I have to get over my anger at my fertility doctor, but we really feel fortunate.  Thanks so much, Jim, and I wish you good health and happiness.  I am so glad I learned more about this disease and won't ever judge people without knowing all the facts!

[debnevada]

My dear, the bullet has been dodged.  I am so happy that this turned out this way.

Have some babies now!

Deb

[jmjm530]

Congrautlations! That must be a real load off both your minds. And good  luck with the fertility treatment.

-- Jim

[scaredwifeinny]

My husband got his PCR results today--NEGATIVE!  Yeah!  The doctor said the additional testing would be a few weeks but he didn't need to come back because this means he doesn't have HCV.  Thanks so much, everyone, for all the help and the information.  You really made this week between the shocking news and this last call bearable for both of us--Bridget and Paul

[Jakied]

believe me, i know how worrisome a 'reactive' screening test can be.  i went through that myself but fortunately the Riba and pcr were neg.

I truly believe your husband's screening test is false pos.  Let us know this turns out.  try to relax.

i have a feeling all will be well.

[scaredwifeinny]

Thanks, Jakied.  I read it!  I also read a 2005 article from the Journal of Microbiology that spoke to the s/co rate of the antibody tests.  That article said that anything lower than 5.0 on the Ortho Vitros EIA was considered a very weak value.  I am assuming that's the test he got b/c it asked the lab to retest for values below 8.0, which I think is that test.  I guess this is all just conjecture, but it's making me feel better to just read everything I possibly can.  Regardless of what happens, I have so much more knowledge about this disease and I'm so appreciative of everyone's advice.

[Jakied]

According to the Cdc, if the signal on the screening test is <3.8, there is 78% chance of a neg riba.  Your husband's signal was 1.04 which is a VERY low pos.  There is a VERY good chance the Riba test will be neg and, in almost every case the Pcr test has the same result as Riba.

I would definitely ask for the riba test and the pcr, qualitative.  I have a feeling both will be neg and your husband can relax knowing he is antibody neg and virus neg.

I will give you the Cdc web site if you would like to read their report.

[scaredwifeinny]

Thanks, I'm hoping so.  I really appreciate all the help, Jim.  It's just that a week ago, the WORST thing in our lives was our difficulty having a baby!!  I can't believe it--now I just want him to be well, so I'm channeling all my energy into that arena.  I think he's a bit calmer than me, so I'm so glad I have this board to unload my high anxiety.  

[jmjm530]

Scared: what are your thoughts on treating immediately?
------------------------------------------------------
You are getting waaay ahead of things :)

First, you need to find out if your husband has HCV or not. Then you will need to run a genotype test which tells you which strain of HCV he has. Then, you will need him evaluated by a hepatologist (liver specialist) over at Cornell who will try and determine how much liver damage he may have. Other tests and/or procedures might be needed for this, inlcluding a liver biopsy.

Once you've gotten all that together, listened to what the liver specialist has to say, plus do some independent research if so motivated (I have a feeling you will be), then you can make an intelligent decision on whether to treat now, or hold off on treatment for newer and better drugs in trial. The important thing is to take your time making decisions so the decisions you make will be the right ones.

Just remember, your husband is the same husband you had a few days ago before you found out he had Hep C and in general Hep C is extremely slow moving. Nothing is going to change overnight so no reason to make any decisions overnight. Personally, I think he has a decent shot at not having Hep C. Let's see what the tests say.

All the best,

-- Jim

[scaredwifeinny]

Thanks, Jim, we were just confused.  It looks in some articles that the lower the s/co, the lower the risk of actually testing positive with RNA.  I guess we just wait and see!  If he is positive, what are your thoughts on treating immediately?  Given than our insurance would charge a total of 100 dollars for the total thing, I didn't know what to ask when we see the doctor.

[jmjm530]

Let me try and give this a shot although I'm certainly not as knowledgeable about antibody testing as some others.

The antibody test your husband took is a preliminary antibody test. He scored very low meaning the test is somewhat inconclusive. For this reason the laboratory suggested he confirm the first test with a more sensitive antibody test called "Riba", or an RNA (viral load test). As to how inconclusive, I really dont' know.

While it's unclear from your posts, it appears your doctor ordered a Riba test (or he should of) that will reflex (automatically trigger) an RNA Viral load test (PCR) in the event the Riba test is positive. That's because you can have still have a positive RIBA but not have Hepatitis C. Chances of that happening are around 15-20%. However, if your viral load test is positive, then the chance you have Hepatitis C are 100%, barring lab error.

On the other hand, if the Riba test is negative, then it will not trigger a viral load test and the assumption will be that your husband does not have Hep C. That said, I suggested earlier that at this point you might want to ask for a viral load test regardless of the Riba result.

Aside from calling your doctor -- requesting copies of all tests taken and all tests ordered -- and then making some waves giving the office instructions (my speciality with my docs. LOL.) my suggestion is to sit back and wait for the results of the tests ordered.

Then make sure you get your own copies of the results. If at that point, you still feel your husband doesn't have a conclusive diagnosis -- then by all means see the liver specialist at Cornell and/or have another doctor order up a viral load test like "Heptimax" which will answer the question once and for all.

All the best,

-- Jim

[scaredwifeinny]

Sorry to bump, but does anyone know if the antibody screening test is more sensitive now than it was a few years ago, or are they using the same tests?

[scaredwifeinny]

We will definitely make sure he runs that test--I know my husband just feels better having gone and started the process.  It's been the worst weekend ever--the not knowing is the worst part.

[jmjm530]

Actually his stats are pretty on the money -- alot of us don't know how we got Hep C and  the "40%" cure rate being for the most common type of Hep C in this country -- genotype 1.

Do let us know when you get the test results back. My guess is that the PCR (viral load) test is not going to be run unless the antibody test comes out positive again. That's how some of these "reflex" tests work.

If it were me, at this point I'd insist on a PCR (viral load test) being run even with a negative antibody, but probably best now to wait until you see what the results of the current tests are. Just make sure you ask for your own copies of all tests done.

All the best,

-- Jim

[scaredwifeinny]

I do--could tell that he had about 4 lanes going at once, didn't really take a detailed history and threw out some statistics that were a little off what I'd read (33% of patients don't know where/how they got HCV, treatment works 40% of the time).  Based on my experience in the field, I think he was just placating us by sitting down and really just wanted to get the bloodwork so he would have something to work with.  The good news is, that's really all we needed right now and if he is positive, we'll be at Cornell asap.