Most often, however, people infected with HIV don’t know they are infected because they don’t feel sick. Many people make the mistake of believing that it is possible to recognize if a person has HIV. This is a great question, as you tackle a big misconception by recognizing that human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is not the same as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Versie Johnson-Mallard, PhD, RN, APRN, WHNP-BC What are the symptoms of AIDS, and how soon would you know you have it (if you are infected)? You should also be tested if you’ve been diagnosed with an STI. Injecting drug users who share dirty needles and syringes are also at risk for HIV and, while it happens less often, someone who performs oral sex on an HPV or HIV-positive partner may also contract the virus.Īccording to the CDC, you should have an HIV test if you’ve injected drugs, have had unprotected vaginal, anal, or oral sex, or have had multiple partners. Viral STIs such as HPV or HIV are spread primarily through anal and vaginal sex. The risk of contracting or transmitting HIV (or any other STIs) through hand-to-genital contact is very slight and I’m not aware of any documented cases where this has been proven to transmit HIV. The area was not bleeding, but I am wondering is this a possible HIV concern or is the chance of it too remote? Dennis Fortenberry, MD, MS I know this is probably stupid but, I was fingering someone last Saturday night and I had a hangnail on my finger. This would also be a good time to request screening for other sexually transmitted infections, and to review recommendations for immunizations (for example, for hepatitis B and HPV) with your doctor. This is because it is sometimes very difficult to determine how risky a given exposure might be. Depending on your circumstances, perhaps routine testing every 3-6 months would appropriate. Having said that, I suggest considering how you will plan for HIV testing in the future. If this test was negative at 40 days after exposure, you did not become infected from the exposure you mentioned. An exposure would be considered high-risk, for example, if the partner was known to be HIV positive. This is an additional test sometimes performed for people with a high-risk exposure and symptoms of acute HIV disease. The second test you mentioned is the HIV 1 RNA PCR.
This test will almost always be reliable three months after exposure, so to be on the safe side, we recommend a second HIV antibody test if the first was done before 90 days after exposure. Detectable antibody levels to HIV usually develop within two to eight weeks (the average is actually about four weeks), but it sometimes takes longer. The first kind, the one used by most clinics as a screening test, looks for antibodies produced by the immune system against the virus. It sounds like you’ve had two different kinds of HIV tests. Should I keep testing for HIV until the six month window is over or was the HIV-1 RNA PCR result at 40 days enough? How accurate is a negative HIV test after 40 days of possible HIV exposure? Currently, it has been over 8 weeks since my possible HIV exposure. Do you have a question about HIV/AIDS that you’d like to ask our experts? Check out our Ask the Experts service, featuring our team of nationally known experts in the field of STIs and sexual health.
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