Aa
western blot for hiv
Hello,
my daughter had unprotected sex with a guy who had been in the army overseas. We found out from his friend that he had confided that he had HIV. We had my daughter tested after 30 days (or so) and the ELISA ( 1.20) came back positive with a negative Western Blot. We waited two weeks (45 days or so after assumed exposure) and again, positive ELISA (1.23) and negative Western Blot. The Hemotologist said its not uncommon to have fase positive. Would the Western Blot pick up the antibodies at 45 days? We are having RNA test just to put everyones mind at ease. The guy says he doesnt have HIV but, refuses to be tested. Worried Dad.
my daughter had unprotected sex with a guy who had been in the army overseas. We found out from his friend that he had confided that he had HIV. We had my daughter tested after 30 days (or so) and the ELISA ( 1.20) came back positive with a negative Western Blot. We waited two weeks (45 days or so after assumed exposure) and again, positive ELISA (1.23) and negative Western Blot. The Hemotologist said its not uncommon to have fase positive. Would the Western Blot pick up the antibodies at 45 days? We are having RNA test just to put everyones mind at ease. The guy says he doesnt have HIV but, refuses to be tested. Worried Dad.
As rightly pointed out by mike positive elisa may b due to several other reasons... Pls try to find whether she have any other stds since they transmit easier than hiv and some of them cause false positive elisa.... Try to check again at the end of 3 months and that will be cut off for 99 percent cases.... Hope she will b negative... And yes don't worry as HIV is not death sentence u have lot of medicines that make it chronic and she can leave almost a normal life span... Take care of ur daughter as she need u the most at this time for emotional support...
COMMUNITY LEADER
A positive result on the ELISA screening test does not necessarily mean that the person has HIV infection. Certain conditions may lead to a false positive result, such as Lyme disease, syphilis, and lupus.
A positive ELISA test is always followed by a Western blot test. A positive Western blot confirms an HIV infection. A negative Western blot test means the ELISA test was a false positive test. The Western blot test can also be unclear, in which case more testing is done.
Negative tests do not rule out HIV infection. There is a period of time (called the "window period") between HIV infection and the appearance of anti-HIV antibodies that can be measured. This period is 3 months from exposure. However, negative WB at 45 days is certainly very encouraging.
I would recommend a Duo test - Antibody + P24 AG test if she is still at 45 +/- 2 to 3 days instead of an RNA PCR at this juncture. RNA PCR works optimum 12-18 days post exposure.
A positive ELISA test is always followed by a Western blot test. A positive Western blot confirms an HIV infection. A negative Western blot test means the ELISA test was a false positive test. The Western blot test can also be unclear, in which case more testing is done.
Negative tests do not rule out HIV infection. There is a period of time (called the "window period") between HIV infection and the appearance of anti-HIV antibodies that can be measured. This period is 3 months from exposure. However, negative WB at 45 days is certainly very encouraging.
I would recommend a Duo test - Antibody + P24 AG test if she is still at 45 +/- 2 to 3 days instead of an RNA PCR at this juncture. RNA PCR works optimum 12-18 days post exposure.
2 Comments
Wont an RNA PCR detect hiv after 18 days of exposure? I had a negative rapid antibody, western blot and pcr rna 8 years post exposure. But for the past three months im very symptomatic.
This post is about 6 years old. If you have questions specific to your situation, I request you to start your own thread.
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