Is an HIV test accurate at 5 1/2 months?!
Question: Is an HIV test accurate at 5 1/2 months.?
I had a situation With a man I was seeing at the time where the condom broke. It bothered so much I got tested right away. Everything came back negative but then I was told that Hiv can take up to 3 months before you can get an accurate reading. I took a test at 3 months and again at 5 1/2 months and they were both negative. I am really nervous every time I think I'm getting a cold I start getting paranoid does anyone know how long I would have to wait to know for sure.?Health Question & Answer
Answers:
You're fine.
as I've posted references many times in this forum before:
in actuality, with modern HIV testing, there is a 95% chance that your test would be positive at 41 days, if you had been infected.
Certainly with a negative test at 5.5 months, you are in the clear.
But I'm glad you're being so careful with your health. Continue to protect yourself.
Note that the statement by Sarah , above is mistaken. Although it can take many many years for patients to become CLINICALLY ILL from AIDS, it absolutely cannot take 7 years to detect it on a test. This has never been the case. Please see http://www.cdc.gov if interested - they'll give you the "party line" that at 6 months you're in the clear, but as I said, published data from many years ago proves that in reality the answer is 41 days. Caveat - that data is from studies of transfusion - associated cases of HIV, not sexual transmission. That's why it is fair to go a little longer for safety (i.e. extending out to 6 months)Health Question & Answer
as I've posted references many times in this forum before:
in actuality, with modern HIV testing, there is a 95% chance that your test would be positive at 41 days, if you had been infected.
Certainly with a negative test at 5.5 months, you are in the clear.
But I'm glad you're being so careful with your health. Continue to protect yourself.
Note that the statement by Sarah , above is mistaken. Although it can take many many years for patients to become CLINICALLY ILL from AIDS, it absolutely cannot take 7 years to detect it on a test. This has never been the case. Please see http://www.cdc.gov if interested - they'll give you the "party line" that at 6 months you're in the clear, but as I said, published data from many years ago proves that in reality the answer is 41 days. Caveat - that data is from studies of transfusion - associated cases of HIV, not sexual transmission. That's why it is fair to go a little longer for safety (i.e. extending out to 6 months)Health Question & Answer
More than 99% of people who are infected would test positive within 3 months. Only in very rare cases would it take up to 6 months to show up on tests. Testing again is not necessary.Health Question & Answer
lady no offense but your fine. even if you did get HIV (unlikly) then their are so many method to slow it down that youll die of old age before aids. Sides if they came back negitive then your fine Health Question & Answer
HIV can take up to SEVEN years to show up positive on a test. But I highly doubt you have anything. Stop worrying.Health Question & Answer
Absolutely!Health Question & Answer