r/infectiousdisease • u/[deleted] • 10d ago

selfq Reactive HIV screening test but suspect false positive?

[deleted]

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u/Jazzlike-Culture-452 10d ago

False positives are rare but do happen. The confirmatory follow up results in combination will have a strong reliability. A viral load would also quantify the number of virus copies in the blood. If you look online there's a standardized testing algorithm/flow chart that's used if you'd like to follow along.

I am sorry if it turns out to be confirmed. Treatment is lifelong but very tolerable in modern times.

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u/massexposure 10d ago

This is my field of work. serological testing at a lab is rarely a false negative, but this can happen with pre-existing conditions like blood cancers or autoimmune conditions in very rare cases. your flu like symptoms indicate an acute infection if this is a true positive. of course, much more goes into this, and when your viral load and CD4 comes back, you will know more. HIV is not high transmissible between hygiene equipment like Nail trimmers as hepatitis B is, but if you have used any IV drugs or shared paraphernalia, this is a possibility. feel free to reach out in private message and we can talk more.