Aa
Scared nurse
I am a healthcare provider who had a needlestick in march of this year. Pt was HCV +. I had a hcv antibody come back reactive yesterday and my world has been upside down since. It was 15 weeks since the needlestick. My s/c ratio is 1.29. I am going back to employer today to have PCR drawn. any advice?? Encouragement?? Feeling very overwhelmed and consumed by this.
A qualitative Pcr looks only for the presence of the Hep c virus. Does not measure
amount of the virus, if the virus is detected. the quantitative pcr is used to measure
the amount of hep C virus. usually the qualitative is first and then, if pos, the quantitative
is used to determine the virsal load.
The qualitative is more sensitive beacuse it looks only for the presence of hep c virus.
Does not measure the amount.
fyi
And there is NO WAY I could begin or would begin to pay for treatment. I feel like the hospital would definitely step up because of their obligation. I was just meaning if others said I needed that other blood test I might could have swung that. Then again it could have been on up there in cost.
Thank you nygirl7.
Good luck on your endevours. I have seen the beautify on forums and how supportive others can be in times of confusion and uncertainty.
Best wishes.
Good luck on your endevours. I have seen the beautify on forums and how supportive others can be in times of confusion and uncertainty.
Best wishes.
OH Peaches by the way the cost of treatment is roughly $150,000 - 300,000 so please pray you dont have to try and pay it out of your pocket!
My attorney friend just sent me this to tell you - just in case:
Her medical insurance carrier can go after the hospital's worker's comp carrier but meanwhile their contract with her is to cover her medical expenses. If they decline coverage then that's a breach of the contract. The insurance companies can settle the "who pays" question between themselves but one or the other of them has to pay for her tx NOW if she needs it.
My attorney friend just sent me this to tell you - just in case:
Her medical insurance carrier can go after the hospital's worker's comp carrier but meanwhile their contract with her is to cover her medical expenses. If they decline coverage then that's a breach of the contract. The insurance companies can settle the "who pays" question between themselves but one or the other of them has to pay for her tx NOW if she needs it.
Yeah, nygirl7 I have no clue. I don't they used an old version. I am just gonna forget about the test the GI md mentioned I think. It was 16 weeks after exposure so I hope it would have shown up if it was going to. I have seen some things out there abt how it didn't need to be the only confirmatory test. But I have no clue about any of this and was gonna ask the forum!
My world was turned upside down a week ago with the antibody reactive results.
Thanks.
My world was turned upside down a week ago with the antibody reactive results.
Thanks.
Your fine the tests now are so sensitive they would pick it up if you were positive. The ultra ultra tests are mostly used to confirm when you get a detected <50 or something.
You got great news I dont know why they dont just say hallelujah you are ok, I wish more than anything that they had said that to me and all my friends (and even people I dont know on here).
I think you should concentrate on the good news and enjoy the summer!
You got great news I dont know why they dont just say hallelujah you are ok, I wish more than anything that they had said that to me and all my friends (and even people I dont know on here).
I think you should concentrate on the good news and enjoy the summer!
He is NOT wanting to consider tx at this point. No way!
He is simply making a statement thru his nurse practitioner (who is a friend of mine) that I may want to ask for a different test. A ultra quantitative. That is all there is to it at this point.
I was just wondering if y'all knew the difference in qualitative PCR (which I had) and ultra quantitative which is what he mentioned in casual conversation.
At this pout I have NO doctor and am being seen by my hospitals employee health dept. They have policy's in place for this kind of thing and have doctors that are over the dept and medical directors. So at this point I am by scheduled for any form of anything until sept 5.
He is simply making a statement thru his nurse practitioner (who is a friend of mine) that I may want to ask for a different test. A ultra quantitative. That is all there is to it at this point.
I was just wondering if y'all knew the difference in qualitative PCR (which I had) and ultra quantitative which is what he mentioned in casual conversation.
At this pout I have NO doctor and am being seen by my hospitals employee health dept. They have policy's in place for this kind of thing and have doctors that are over the dept and medical directors. So at this point I am by scheduled for any form of anything until sept 5.
I think the common test would be <50 and if it came up less but detectible wouldn't it say detected <50 meaning it was lower but not counted at that sensitivity? I mean please dont tell me they used the old old old <615 test that wouldn't make any sense.
Something is not adding up here. You have a neg Pcr, correct? That means you
do NOT have Hcv. there is NO reason to begin treatment. a qualitative Pcr is very
sensitive and your post says it was neg. for sure, you do not have Hcv.
IMO, there is a good chance you do not have the antibody to Hcv. that is why I
suggested you ask for the Riba test. Is your doctor confusing hep C antibody
and hep C virus? Something is not adding up here.
Hey nygirl7, He was wanting a more specific test I think to detect lower levels of the virus if there were any present so that tx could start sooner than the 6 month time frame.
I understood him to mean that the ultraquant could detect sometimes what the qualitative PCR couldn't. Who knows though? Could have been just an md test preference. I have no worries was just kinda wanting all the forum experts to weigh in!!
Thanks and I am going to enjoy my neg PCR results as some of you suggested!
I understood him to mean that the ultraquant could detect sometimes what the qualitative PCR couldn't. Who knows though? Could have been just an md test preference. I have no worries was just kinda wanting all the forum experts to weigh in!!
Thanks and I am going to enjoy my neg PCR results as some of you suggested!
The md wants to treat as soon as possible since I am at 17 weeks so I guess that's why he wants the ultraquant PCR??? "
If you had a PCR come back negative I can't see why he would want to treat you, it means you do not have the virus. I mean the test they used couldn't have been that old.....
If you had a PCR come back negative I can't see why he would want to treat you, it means you do not have the virus. I mean the test they used couldn't have been that old.....
Do your self a favor and ask for the Riba confirmatory antibody test. Since your
screening test was a 'weak pos' thre is a good chance your Riba will be neg and then
ALL your worries are over.
So just to back track, anibody positive, qualitative PCR negative and currently nothing scheduled until sept 5 when I will have another PCR maybe.
Nurse practitioner friend just said that GI doctor she works for would recommend a ultra quantitative pcr.
That is where i stand now.
Nurse practitioner friend just said that GI doctor she works for would recommend a ultra quantitative pcr.
That is where i stand now.
Thanks. I am not sure why the md wanted an ultra quantitative. Thus would be a workers comp situation and I guarantee you my hospital won't pat for another teat since Thr qualitative PCR was negative. The md wants to treat as soon as possible since I am at 17 weeks so I guess that's why he wants the ultraquant PCR??? I agree with him just trying to figure out what to do and if I can pay out of pocket because i bet my health insurance wont pay for it with it being a workers comp situation. My go to my priimary care md tomorrow and see what he says.
your signal of 1.29 is considered a 'weak pos.' With a reading that low, there is a good
chance it is a 'false pos.' Ask your doctor for a 'RIBA' confirmatory test. Riba is very
SPECIFIC for Hcv antibody. the screening tests are very SENSITIVE for antibodies
and may cross react with antibodies other than Hcv to give a 'false pos reading.'
If the Riba is neg, that means you never had Hcv antibody and the screening test
was a false pos. the pcr looks for the actual virus. With that being neg, you do
not have the virus. Hopefully, your riba will be neg and that would mean no prior
exposure. Patients who clear the virus retain the antibodies for a LONG time,
usually the rest of their life.
Anyway, if you need a place to go for the Riba test, call 'request a test.'
Heard I may need a PCR ultraquant. Measures lower level than PCR would. Any info??
Good news, Peach-ster! I'd neglected to put in some info in my posting that might have also helped to keep you calm. There are various forms of our bod's reaction to exposure. There's antibody (Ab) formation to the surface of the viral coat and is, I believe, abbreviated as AbS. It means the immune system has "seen" a virus particle in the bloodstream. Then there's AbC, or antibody to the Core of the virus. There, the viral DNA goodie inside has been detected by our immune system; that's more worrisome. It's possible to have AbS and never develop AbC. I think I found this information (for a friend in your position) on the CDC website.
Anyway, good news, but keep us all posted on developments.
--- Patrick
Anyway, good news, but keep us all posted on developments.
--- Patrick
Got my PCR results back this morning and they were NEGATIVE! This is a negative results 15 weeks post exposure following a reactive antibody of 1.29. I can't believe it actually. I am going to follow up Sept 5th which will be 6 months since my March 4th exposure from a needlestick! I can't say enough about all of the fellow forum posters and the unbelievable amout of support I have felt and received in the last few days!
Your comments and encouragement are priceless and made a significant impact on my life and will continue to do so.
Thanks again or te encouragement and knowledge base!
Your comments and encouragement are priceless and made a significant impact on my life and will continue to do so.
Thanks again or te encouragement and knowledge base!
Hi, peach. I'm a retired RN (male) who somehow picked Hep C up in the early '80s. Still don't remember any needle stick (hated filling out Incident Reports!) so I probably was exposed when one of my pts' bled out from esophageal variscies and blood was everywhere. No way to tell.
Now, like most of the other folks here have responded to you, I'm gonna say the same thing,...calm down. Go check the CDC info page on Hep C for good info. I think I remember the self-cure rate for acute infection is something like 55-60%, so there's a good chance it won't go chronic. If it does, as one of the other folks noted, it's a slow-progressing situation. I've had mine for about 29 yrs now and have only in the last year progressed to cirrhosis (technically). There are some knowledgable people on this forum, so you're in good company. Personally, I'm waiting for my Hepa-guy to call about starting one of the new anti-virals regimens.
In response to your question for info on INF/Riba Tx: I non-responded to the INF regimen twice (!). If you do get put on it, all I can tell you is my experiences, others have different reactions. The first 24 hrs I could have sworn I had malaria. The chills were pretty rough. But by 36-48 hrs they were gone. Over the next few months I developed an itching over all the long bones (shins, forearms) but nowhere else. Had to glove my hands at night to keep from scratching. My nose ran like a faucet, and I carried paper towels instead of Kleenex. But other than those things, I actually felt pretty good. Maybe it was knowing that I was doing something to kill the little critters, but every time my doc asked if I was depressed or suicidal, I'd tell him I actually had more energy and was in a better mood than before! Unfortunately, both times, after six months my PCR had gone UP. Oh, well..... We'll see how the new Tx works for me.
So calm down and read up on factual data (verify anything you read!) . BTW, CDC says that they feel that only 3-4% of transmission is sexual and there's a chance that data is too high. My wife still tests negative after 25 yrs. There seems to be some good folks on this forum.
Carry on, trooper. ---Palera
Now, like most of the other folks here have responded to you, I'm gonna say the same thing,...calm down. Go check the CDC info page on Hep C for good info. I think I remember the self-cure rate for acute infection is something like 55-60%, so there's a good chance it won't go chronic. If it does, as one of the other folks noted, it's a slow-progressing situation. I've had mine for about 29 yrs now and have only in the last year progressed to cirrhosis (technically). There are some knowledgable people on this forum, so you're in good company. Personally, I'm waiting for my Hepa-guy to call about starting one of the new anti-virals regimens.
In response to your question for info on INF/Riba Tx: I non-responded to the INF regimen twice (!). If you do get put on it, all I can tell you is my experiences, others have different reactions. The first 24 hrs I could have sworn I had malaria. The chills were pretty rough. But by 36-48 hrs they were gone. Over the next few months I developed an itching over all the long bones (shins, forearms) but nowhere else. Had to glove my hands at night to keep from scratching. My nose ran like a faucet, and I carried paper towels instead of Kleenex. But other than those things, I actually felt pretty good. Maybe it was knowing that I was doing something to kill the little critters, but every time my doc asked if I was depressed or suicidal, I'd tell him I actually had more energy and was in a better mood than before! Unfortunately, both times, after six months my PCR had gone UP. Oh, well..... We'll see how the new Tx works for me.
So calm down and read up on factual data (verify anything you read!) . BTW, CDC says that they feel that only 3-4% of transmission is sexual and there's a chance that data is too high. My wife still tests negative after 25 yrs. There seems to be some good folks on this forum.
Carry on, trooper. ---Palera
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