Hiv risk through rubbing/frottage

[Ann]

AK,

1.The condom busting incident was about 12 weeks and 1 day ago. Some places say 13 weeks is conclusive while others say 13 weeks. Would this 6 day discrepancy make a difference?

2. If you get a positive on one test and a negative on one test, does that mean that you are more than likely positive?

3. Are the HIV blood test more accurate than the oral swabs?

4. Between the time she put the drop of blood in the test and the time she put the 3 drops in (about 60 to 90 seconds at most), would this have caused the test to be inaccurate, and yield a false negative? Also, the orasure takes 20 minutes, and the clearview takes 15 minutes. Is one more accurate because of this? She said that if you don't read the results on the Clearview within 20 minutes then a line will show up (something about the test sitting for a while) so it's important to read the results fast.

5. Should I assume that I am positive until my WB comes back, or should I not worry about this? The ex and the woman at the other testing site said I shouldn't worry about it but I can't help it because I think the WB will come back positive.

6. If I got a rapid test positive result, if I took another one later the same day considering it was done right, would it had been positive too if I was truly positive?

7. Can things like herpes ( I suspect the red lesion on my cheek may have been an internal cold sore) cross-react to cause a false positive?

8. When one test positive on one test, and negative on another, what is the likelihood that their WB will come out positive?

9. If I am truly negative, should I test again in 6 days because 12 weeks and one day is not 13 weeks?

1. No, six days is not going to make a difference. The vast majority of people who have actually been infected will seroconvert and test positive by SIX weeks, with the average time to seroconversion being only 22 days. The window period in most of the world (using the same tests) is twelve weeks. Lord knows why the US stubbornly sticks to thirteen.

2. You're most likely hiv negative. The only risky activity you report is the condom break over twelve weeks ago, and a "weakly positive" (aka indeterminate) rapid result plus a negative rapid result most likely means NEGATIVE.

3. The blood tests (non-rapid) are less prone to false positive results. Otherwise, they are both accurate when negative and done at the appropriate time. You tested at the appropriate time.

4. No, taking a minute or so between taking your blood and putting it on the test stick won't make a difference. And yes, leaving the test too long before reading it can result in a false positive (maybe this happened with the first test?).

5. No, you have not been diagnosed as hiv positive and I doubt very much that you will. I believe you had a false (weakly) positive result.

6. Yes. This is why I doubt very much that you are positive.

7. No. Pregnancy and autoimmune conditions can cause false positives, and sometimes they just happen. Herpes will not affect the test one way or the other.

8. Considering you tested over twelve weeks since your only reported risk and you had an indeterminate result AND a NEGATIVE result, it is highly UNlikely that your WB test will come back positive.

9. Ugh. I've already explained that six days isn't going to make the slightest difference. If you had been infected as a result of the condom break (the ONLY risk you report), BOTH of your rapid test would have been clear, undeniable positive results. Not "weakly positive". Not negative.

Ann



edited to add quote

[AnxietyKing656]

Thanks again Ann. I felt a little better after the negative blood test result. But she put the blood in IMMEDIATELY, but waited a minute or two before putting the 3 drops of testing solutions (not the blood) into the test.

And the line on the oral swab test actually showed up kind of early, which has me a worried. I think the odds are in my favor, and you have confirmed that, but I just don't want to get my hopes up and then get shocked in a week or two.

[Ann]

AK,

Botched rapid tests usually give false positive results, not false negative. Chill.

Ann

[AnxietyKing656]

I'm sorry but I have more questions....
Okay,so my ex tested negative with the Rapid Oral Swab test (the one I tested weakly positive with). It has been 12 weeks since the condom break so I assume that I did not contract hiv from that situation. But my mind is still racing for quite a few reasons. This leaves the blow job I recieved from the poz guy back in late April which may had not shown up on the test I took in June just yet. I do remember he was messing with his mouth before giving the the BJ. The other situations have to do with a steamroom encounter where there was mutual masturbation, and another encounter with 2 other guys where we jacked each other off....no cum. This is why I'm so shocked I got the reactive result because according to you guys AND most of the other experts online I did nothing really risky. Maybe I stepped on a needle outside or something? Few questions...

1. When I got the reactive result on the OraQuick, the lady said that the result to the hiv test would be available in 1 to 2 weeks. Two weeks and a day has passed and I called for results and they are not back. This concerns me. How long do Western Blot tests usually take to come back? Would a positive Western Blot test delay the returning of the results? If not, why would it be taking longer?

2. If I do have an autoimmune disorder, can the Western Blot also have a false positive? Can autoimmune disorders affect seroconversion time?

3. I read that the OraQuick is slightly less sensitive than the rapid blood test from clearview I took due to the fact that there are less antibodies in oral gum fluid than in blood. Also, the Clearview and the Oraquick have similar specificities, so why did one test come up positive and the other negative?

4. Is it possible that the lady administrating the rapid blood test read the results wrong? Perhaps she missed the faint line on the T or read the test too early?  Maybe the test was out of date?

Honestly if my result is negative, I will probably never take an OraQuick again. It's unfortunate because I liked the fact they were available over the counter.

MAY I ASK YOU NOT GIVE ME A TIME OUT UNTIL I GET MY RESULT? EVERYTHING IN MY LIFE IS CRASHING TOGETHER IT'S NOT JUST THIS. SO PLEASE BEAR WITH ME. YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN A BLESSING! I KNOW I'M GETTING ON YOUR NERVES AND DON'T REALLY MEAN TO, AND APOLOGIZE PROFUSELY.

[Ann]

AK,

1. You did NOT have a reactive (positive) result. You had a weak, "indeterminate" result, one that is most likely a false result. WB results can take anywhere from a day to a couple weeks or more to be returned. This is usually a result of how busy the lab is (or isn't). Also, "two weeks" when talking about places of business like labs sometimes means more than ten working days - more like twelve to fourteen working days.

2. No and No.

3. Again, one test came up indeterminate and one came up negative. You have NOT had a positive result. As I have already told you, the first one was most likely incorrect, possibly due to user (the test person) error.

4. Botched tests usually give false positive (or indeterminate) results.

5. I very much doubt that you are going to get a positive WB result.

Ann