Low antibody hep c levels

[annieguns28]

I got a call from the doc yesterday saying I had reacted to the hep c antibody test. My level was a l.8. The reaction rate is anything from l.0-9.0. Has anyone had this happen and turned ou to be negative on RIBA test?

[annieguns28]

hello doc called and the RIBA WAS NEGATIVE. I'm so relieved. So it was a false positive test. How messed up, and I have to pay for all this stuff, thank you everone for helping me. I wish you all the best of luck in fighting hep c.

[Bill1954]

Different test protocols use various signal to cut-off values; for examples, open the following link:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hepatitis/c/sc_ratios.htm

My best guess is that neither of you will find that you’re positive for active HCV RNA; the virus itself.

Keep in mind that nucleic acid testing that’s required for follow up testing generally requires 7-10 days to perform and return to the doctor’s office. In the event it is positive, you might consider asking for copies of all lab and procedure results; many of us in here keep a medical file to help us communicate effectively.

Even a true positive antibody result doesn’t necessarily translate into active infection; about 15-20% of patients that have been exposed will defeat the virus via their own immune response within the initial six months of infection.

Sexual intercourse is an inefficient method of vectoring the virus. However, it **can** happen. It’s thought to be a more common occurrence when trauma is present; think blood-to-blood. This is a study published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology that dealt with this issue:


http://tinyurl.com/258a2l


"Dipartimento di Medicina Interna, Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
The risk of sexual transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was evaluated among 895 monogamous heterosexual partners of HCV chronically infected individuals in a long-term prospective study, which provided a follow-up period of 8,060 person-years. Seven hundred and seventy-six (86.7%) spouses were followed for 10 yr, corresponding to 7,760 person-years of observation. One hundred and nineteen (13.3%) spouses (69 whose infected partners cleared the virus following treatment and 50 who ended their relationship or were lost at follow-up) contributed an additional 300 person-years. All couples denied practicing anal intercourse or sex during menstruation, as well as condom use. The average weekly rate of sexual intercourse was 1.8. Three HCV infections were observed during follow-up corresponding to an incidence rate of 0.37 per 1,000 person-years. However, the infecting HCV genotype in one spouse (2a) was different from that of the partner (1b), clearly excluding sexual transmission. The remaining two couples had concordant genotypes, but sequence analysis of the NS5b region of the HCV genome, coupled with phylogenetic analysis showed that the corresponding partners carried different viral isolates, again excluding the possibility of intraspousal transmission of HCV."


Best to you—

Bill

[Dallasguy84]

I just got mine back yesterday and mine was a 1.57

From the research I've been doing, I think we will both turn out to be false positives. But yeah, I have to wait just like you to find out for sure. Really *****.

There seems to still be a perception that Hep C is often sexually transmitted. There doesn't seem to be anyone on these boards that got it from sexual transmission. Papers I've read say it's very rarely sexually transmitted. Everyone seems to have gotten it either from using needles or blood transfusions before 1992.