Accuracy of 5 Week HIV and STD Test

[All_was_good_til_now]

I recently had a 5 week HIV STD panel test post protected vaginal sex with a csw.  All which came back negative.  I have read the forum and was looking for recent data in regards to testing.  I have seen where 3months is recomended but would like to know how accurate it is for a 5 week.  I have read postd from 2005 but didnt see anything more recent, has anything changed?  What is the likelihood that I could be infected?  Thank you for your time and I truly apprciate this site and forum.

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

Welcome to the forum.  But it's hard to believe you couldn't find information since 2005. I just tried entering "window period" in the search window and came up with 378 threads on this forum, including several this month.  "Time to positive HIV test" found 1,453 discussions.

Your risk of HIV was much too low to require testing in the first place.  The odds any particular Las Vegas CSW has HIV is probably 1 in 1,000, but let's go on the high said and say 1 in 100.  If she had it, the average chance of catching it from a single episode of unprotected vaginal sex is around 1 in 2,000.  So even without a condom, the chance you caught HIV was 1 in 200,000.  Condoms are 99% protective, so that brings your odds to 1 in 20 million.  And although a test at 5 weeks misses a few infections, the negative result was at least 90% reliable.  So with that test result, the chance you have HIV comes to 1 in 200 million.

Want to put that risk in perspective?  If you live in the US, there is 1 chance in 1,756 you'll be dead of an accident within the next 12 months.  Let's round that up to 1 in 2,000.  Your chance of accidental death within a year is 100,000 times higher than the chance you have HIV.

Time to move on.  But don't forget your seat belt!

Regards--  HHH, MD

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

WB was not done.  Just the screening test.  The the first 2 lines of abbreviations just describe the test(s) done and mean "HIV antibody test for HIV types 1 and 2 by enzyme immunoassay with reflect to HIV 1 WB". "Reflex" means WB would have been done automatically if the screening test had been positve. As is probably obvious, labs word these things for the health care provider, not for the patient.  The test results per se normally are not given to patients, just the provider's verbal report.

Line 3 is the test result, non-reactive.  You don't have HIV and do not need further testing.

That's all for this thread.  I won't have anything more to day.

[All_was_good_til_now]

Does the following mean that a western blot test was done as well as antibody?

HIV AB, HIV 1/HIV 2, EIA
W/REFL  TO HIV 1 WB
HIV 1/2 EIA AB SCREEN                         NON-REACTIVE

[All_was_good_til_now]

Dr. HHH thank you for the statisitical analysis.  Seat belt is on but wont be visiting a csw anytime soon. Just new to this forum and am very vulnerable at the current time.  I truly appreciate your response and if you are up for it next time Im in Seattle,  Rovers is on me.  Or if you are in Tampa any steakhouse of your choice.  Your candid yet to the point responses warrant a goog chuckle or a somber cry.  Either way they get the point across.  Thank you agian and be sure to take me up on the offer.  Between our personalities I know wed have a blast!  Just no CSW, we can bring the families :)