| Ask GMHC
What could cause a false positive test result?
Question
I have a friend who recently tested positive but the results were
confusing and the test had to be done over. What could cause this?
My friend does use party drugs. Could this cause a false positive
HIV test result? I understand that the test looks for HIV-antibodies,
but thought it was worth a shot to see what factors could create
false positives.
Answer
Receiving an unclear medical test result can be very confusing
and difficult to deal with. I am not sure about the specifics of
your friend's test results. It sounds like he tested 'positive',
but there was something that caused the testers to want to re-test.
As you mentioned, the HIV test looks for antibodies to the virus.
Usually an ELISA is done first, because it's a very sensitive screening
test that can detect any recent antibody activity. If the result
is negative on an ELISA test, that means no antibodies were found
at the time of the test. However, if a person shows a positive
result on the ELISA, then he/she needs to be given a confirmatory
test that looks specifically for HIV antibodies (usually this is
a Western Blot test). BOTH a positive ELISA AND a positive Western
Blot are needed for an HIV positive result. When a person gets
a positive result on the ELISA and a negative on the Western Blot,
the result is inconclusive.
It is possible that your friend may have gotten an 'inconclusive'
result. 'Inconclusive' means that the lab could not accurately
read the sample, and could not determine if it was positive or
negative. Different things can cause such a result, such as other
antibodies from other illnesses. It can be very frustrating to
get an 'inconclusive' result. When this is the case, a person should
see a doctor to determine what might be causing the inconclusive
result (such as another illness), and the person should be re-tested
in 6 weeks.
A 'false positive' occurs when a person gets a positive Western
Blot that turns out to be incorrect. This happens very rarely.
The use of drugs would not affect the outcome of the test, however.
It sounds like a difficult situation overall, and I'm wondering
what kind of support your friend or yourself might need. Please
don't hesitate to call us if you have any other questions. You
can reach us at 800-243-7692.
Best wishes,
The GMHC Hotline
Questions or concerns? Email us at hotline@gmhc.org.
For more information, visit our Hotline.
© 2003 Gay Men's Health Crisis |
home
