Waiting For Testing

[anonymous76]

Dear Dr,

Q. # 1 -

I've been told that testing for herpes before 2 or 3 months after possible infection/outbreak can yield inaccurate test results. Why is this?

Q # 2 -

My girlfriend has experienced possible symptoms of herpes. She has been tested for every other STD, and those have come back negative. We are now waiting 90 as the clinic instructed to be tested for herpes. I myself have had no symptoms. So my question is, should I wait the 90 days as well to get tested, even if I've had no symptoms?

[gracefromHHP]

If your gf got herpes from you, you had it since before you met her .  You can get tested now to see what your own status is. If you are negative and her initial results were negative, then it's probably not herpes going on.

grace

[youngguy800]

the reason you have to wait so long is because the herpes blood test is looking for antibodies to the virus in your blood.. for some people this can take a short while and for others it can take up to 3-4 months for their body to produce enough antibodies to yield a postive test result.. in other words a blood test before 3-4 months could result in a false negative if your body has not produced enough antibodies at the time.