Indeterminate WB 3 bands

[jay91479]

Hi.  I have a very unique situation and hopefully someone can provide some support for me or my story will wind up helping someone that might be experiencing what I'm going through.  My story: I went in to get checked for stds since I am about ready to start a relationship with a girl and wanted to be safe.  I got tested for pretty much everything and everything came back fine except for a repeatedly reactive ELISA and indeterminate wester blot with p24, p40, and p65 present.  I am not a drug user, don't sleep with random women (usually!!!), and consider myself somewhat risky due to never wearing condoms (I'm an idiot, I know).  My only risk of HIV comes from a girl who I slept with a couple times about two months ago.  I called her and my previous girlfriend of about one year (relationship ended about three months ago) and told them they should get checked just to be safe. The old girlfriend got a rapid test which came back negative: the new girl got her blood drawn and the results should be in today or tomorrow.  I haven't known this last girl very long and we are strictly platonic friends at this point.  She gives blood every three months and says I'm the only guy she's slept with in a couple years.  She assures me she isn't a needle user, but also told me that her previous boyfriend was a heroine addict.  I don't have any reason not to believe her.  If she is telling me the truth then there is really no possible way I could have HIV, but I am still scared to the point of hysteria.  I wish she would have got the rapid test so I wouldn't have had to wait for her results from her serum test to come back!  I really don't think I have HIV, although at first I did, I actually think I have lupus which I will get attempt to get diagnosed for if I am one of those rare individuals who's blood sets off the ELISA and western blot.  The reason I think I might have lupus is because of my medical history: alopecia of beard, unexplained illness for a week that almost killed me (8 years ago and probably epstein-bar virus), rashes, swollen lymph nodes, and intermittent periods of fatigue that might last months!!  Sorry to draw this out so long, but here are the questions I have.  1.  Does any know how common it is to have three bands (specifically mine) show up on the western blot and it winds up not being HIV?  2.  Should I rest my mind and assume I don't have HIV if the most recent girl I slept with has a negative HIV test?  Should I even bother following up with a specialist for diagnosing autoimmune disorders if it is not HIV?  I have been pretty low risk since my last HIV test and they have always come back negative in the past, what in the world is setting it off?  If it is lupus, then why wouldn't it have set off the ELISA test in the past?  Could it be because lupus is a virus that flares up and it just happened to flare when I had my last HIV test done?  I haven't had sex in two months, yet my western blot showed three bands including the p24, should I even worry about HIV?  I need HELP.

[jay91479]

Thanks Kenzorio....you are helping me out more than you know.  I asked my doctor about seeing a immunologist, but he said it is probably just a waist of time and for some unlucky reason, my blood just happened to cross react with the antibody test.  What do you think?Lucky Me!!! :-(   This whole process has really helped me to appreciate protecting oneself--life is very fragile and we must do what we can to protect ourselves.  I also feel very sorry for the people who have to go through what I am and then actually wind up being postive--god bless them.

[anon0415]

Listen to your doctor, no need to worry needlessly. Take the test and move on. For now, it may help calm your fears knowing that 15% of people without HIV do have some positive bands on WB that has nothing to do with HIV. That's why WB is only used to confirm a positive ELIZA and must have many bands to be considered positive. You may have been unlucky to be one of those 15% with positive WB bands (perhaps with an extra band or so in there) and then also ran into a false-positive ELIZA which happens from time to time for unknown reasons. Your recent negative ELIZA, and the negative tests of those two girls are strong evidence that this is what happened.

[jay91479]

Thanks for the replies everyone.  I am expecting it to be negative, but my case seems to be very unique in that I had THREE bands show up on the WB.  Then I test non-reactive seven days later.  Keep in mind it had been at least two months one week since last sexual contact and got the negative ELISA after the indeterminate WB.  My doctor said I have absolutely nothing to worry about and don't even need to get retested.  I asked him if I was safe in starting up a new relationship and he said I was.  I still think the odds of having HIV are extremelly low for me since both girls came back non-reactive and I also got a non-reactive ELISA, but I am worried sick because I have started up a new relationship and had unprotected sex since I thought I was in the clear.  I was seeing the doctor a few days ago for allergies and only then addressed to him whether or not I should get tested again.  He told me I should to be absolutely sure and put this thing to rest.  It worried me that he said I should since I thought I was in the clear.  Now I am waiting and hoping.  I don't think I could live with myself if I gave hiv to this new girl I am seeing.

[chirag_neoliberal]

*So if it comes to be positve doubt do anything silly
So if it comes to be positve donot do anything silly

[chirag_neoliberal]

If your ELISA comes negative then according to me there is a very rare chance that you are HIV+.From what I have read and heard false negative results are very rare for ELISA after the window period.If you had negative ELISA then there is no need to do WB.BCOZ WB is a conformatry  test if ELISA turns to be positive.

If your doubts still persists then do PCR-DNA for HIV to clear hesitation on your mind.Since this catches HIV virus genetic material  and is highly sensitive . But this test is very costly about 2400 Indian rupees in Ranbaxy labs in India.It is also prone to false positive results because of its highly sensitivity.So if it comes to be positve doubt do anything silly.Again I am not an expert do consult  pathologist or some medical professionals before doing this test.Tell your medical status to them such as whether you are on any medications or is suffering from any disease .Also ask them whether this test is warranted in your case.

[Teak]

Yes it's possible. First off you don't have a confirmed positive result.

[anon0415]

I don't think anyone would be able to answer your questions since it is a very special case. A false positive Eliza+WB is rare but can happen. The negative tests from the people you have slept with (assuming they are telling the truth and you didn't have any other risk behaviour) as well as your own negative eliza test certainly give grounds for hope. A case I could see where your last negative eliza wouldn't be reliable would be if you were still in the window period. I would imagine it might be possible for tests to give conflicting results during this period.

I think you should discuss this with your doctor and preferably an expert in HIV diagnostics. They must be puzzled about these conflicting results as well and would be interested in finding the cause - this is true no matter what the final result is.

Try to stay optimistic and not think too much about it. As always, be sure to stay  safe if/when you are having sex. And please keep us updated!

[jay91479]

I'm a little worried.  It has been five months and I have pretty much put this out of my mind.  However, I went to the doctor yesterday and am waiting for the results on the ELISA test just to confirm my HIV negative hopes.  My question is since I took the ELISA a few days after my indeterminate western blot/positve ELISA test and it came back negative, do I have anything to worry about.  Is it even possible for an ELISA test to turn from postitive to negative then to positive again (I have not had any recent sexual exposure)?  Wouldn't my negative ELISA be 100% confirmatory that I am o.k.?

[bmw327]

thanks man we seem to share the same problem but iam happy yu come back to post the final result it gives us the picture of the problem even later we can use yo case as reference to other pple  with the same problem with but anxious like yu to have a clue of the outcome   thanks again

[ageshore]

Great news!

Keep them coming!:D

[jay91479]

I have good news!  Against the doctors orders, I went ahead and had another blood test which was only five days from my previous HIV test.  It came back negative!  The other girl also got her results back and they were negative too!  What a week of hell.  I know this journey isn't over and I want to try and find out exactly what is going on with me.  I still think I will get the ANA test for lupus. If that test comes back fine, I'm just going to assume my first test was due to lab error.  I will be sure to keep everyone posted as to my progress.  I want to thank ageshore and lifeinhell for your support.  You really helped more than you know.  Hopefully my story will keep others from going through all the mental anguish I went through.  

[jay91479]

Thanks for the support lifeinhell.  I wish I could relax but it isn't happening.  When someone holds a gun to your head and you don't know if your going to get shot, you tend to get nervous.  I wish I could shut this off, but it is not possible.  I have hardly eaten or slept in four days and I can't work effectively.  Can anyone try to answer some of the questions I have?  I just had my first nervous breakdown about an hour ago.

[lifeinhell]

im no expert but frm wht i know to conclude a western blot to be positive u should have a band reactive to gp120 or gp160 plus p41 or p24.nw ures doesnt fill in dis criteria..so its an indeterminate result...i suggest u wait for anther one moth n rpt elisa n if it still is reactive go ahead with da western blot...i know waitin one month can be stressfull but we have no other choice but wait and repeat da tests....hopefulls until dn pray....n good luck..