Question about HIV Antibodies

[JameRoach]

If you get tested two years or more post exposure will a rapid HIV test detect antibodies?
Can HIV antibodies disappear?
Ive been told that HIV can remain undetectable for years. Is this true?

I'm asking because I have been tested since my last possible exposure. It was 4 months after the exposure. It was negative. So does that also cover the possible exposure 2 years or so ago?

Thank you.

[Vance2335]

Yes HIV tests detect antibodies, that is the only approved test for diagnostic purposes is an antibody test.
No they will never disappear
No...3 months post exposure

Your test at 4 months will cover anything there and back

[flow1987]

An HIV test should cover 3 months following exposure. HIV antibodies NEVER disappear from the bloodstream. If a person was to be infected with HIV, the virus would make copies of itself in the body everyday, so our body's immune system would respond everyday as a result.

I have also had someone tell me that it is possible for HIV to go undetected for years. This is regarded as a myth.

According to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation:
"The three month window period is normal for most of the population. Many people will have detectable antibodies in three or four weeks. Very, very rarely (i.e., only a few cases ever), a person could take six months to produce antibodies."

So be happy, for it is my belief that you are A-OK! :)