Understanding the Results of an HIV/AIDS Test

Negative Result

A negative result means that no HIV antibodies were found in your blood. Your condition is called seronegative. This usually means you are not infected.

Testing negative does not mean you are immune to HIV. No one is immune to HIV. Even if you test negative, there are steps you should take to protect your health and the health of your sex and/or drug using partner(s). Do not engage in behaviors that can transmit HIV. These behaviors include having sexual intercourse with an infected person or sharing needles or syringes with an infected person. Your post-test counselor will discuss these behaviors with you.

There is a small chance that you may be infected, even though you tested negative. It takes time for the body to develop HIV antibodies after infection. Almost all people develop HIV antibodies within 3 months, but it can take up to 6 months after infection for some persons. If you engaged in behavior that can transmit the virus during the six months just before your test, you may be infected but still test negative because your body may not yet have produced antibodies. To be sure, you must be retested at least 6 months after you last engaged in behavior that can transmit HIV.

Indeterminate Result

Once in a while, test results are unclear. The lab cannot tell whether they are positive or negative, even if the test has been performed correctly. If this happens to you, it is important that you discuss this with your counselor or doctor, and, if appropriate, be tested again. HIV-antibody tests results are extremely accurate when proper procedures are followed. However, a very small number of people may test positive even though they are not infected. These are called false positive results. If you do test positive, you should discuss with your counselor or doctor whether retesting a new blood sample is appropriate.

Positive Result

A positive result means antibodies to HIV were found in your blood. This means you have HIV infection. Your condition is called HIV-positive, or seropositive. You will most likely develop AIDS, but no one can know when you will get sick. Within ten years after infection, about half of untreated people have developed AIDS. However, prompt medical care may delay the onset of AIDS and prevent some life-threatening conditions.

If your test result is positive, there are a number of important steps you should take immediately to protect your health.

• See a doctor, even if you don't feel sick. Ask if this doctor has experience treating people with HIV infection and is familiar with AIDS and HIV-related issues. Tell the doctor your test result and discuss immune system monitoring and treatment. Monitoring and appropriate medical action are the ways to slow the growth of HIV and to delay the onset of AIDS.

• Have a tuberculosis (TB) test done. You may be unknowingly infected with TB. You could become seriously ill if your TB goes undetected. TB can be treated successfully if detected early in your HIV infection.

• Ask your doctor if you should get flu vaccine or other vaccines.

• Enroll in a program to help you stop using drugs, drinking a lot of alcoholic beverages, or smoking. This will help you reduce or stop engaging in behaviors that can weaken your body.

• Consider joining a support group for people with HIV infection. Such support can help you cope with being HIV-infected.

You should take steps to protect the health of others:

• You may infect others if you engage in behaviors that can transmit the virus (unprotected sexual intercourse - vaginal, anal, or oral - or sharing drug needles or syringes).

• To reduce the risk of transmitting HIV if you have sexual intercourse, always use latex or plastic condoms. Use them from beginning to end every time you have sex and make sure to use them properly.

• There is no known risk of infection except in situations where we come in contact with blood, semen, or vaginal fluids.

• If you are a woman, you should understand the risks of pregnancy. Without medical treatment, there is about a one-in-four chance that you will pass HIV to your unborn baby. With medical treatment the chance you will pass HIV to your baby can be reduced to 1 in 12. This treatment includes giving AZT (zidovudine) to the woman during pregnancy and labor. The baby must be given AZT for the first several weeks of life. There must be no breastfeeding by the infected mother.

• Do not donate blood, organs, sperm, corneas(eyes), or bone marrow. Revise any organ donor permissions you have given.

• Tell any doctor or dentist who treats you that you are infected.

• You should tell anyone with whom you have had unprotected sex (oral, anal, or vaginal) or shared needles since 1978 that you are (and they may be) infected with HIV. It is especially important that you tell current and recent partners. Health professionals can tell your sex and/ or drug-using partner(s) for you or help you tell them yourself. All of your present and past partners should be referred for counseling and testing. If they are HIV positive, prompt medical care may delay the onset of AIDS and prevent some life-threatening conditions. Also, they may unknowingly infect others. You have an important role to play in helping stop the spread of HIV infection.

Telling people about your test result can be a very sensitive matter. You may want to discuss it with your testing counselor. They can assist you in telling your sex or drug-using partners. If you choose to tell your partners yourself, do not make accusations. Be prepared for partners to become upset or hostile. Urge them to be counseled and tested as soon as possible. You may want to give them a copy of this leaflet.

How a Positive HIV/AIDS Test Result May Affect Your Life

Being infected with HIV is not only a health matter. It raises financial and social issues as well. One of these issues is insurance. These issues should be discussed with a qualified counselor.

Your ability to pay for healthcare can affect your access to monitoring and treatment. If you do not have health insurance or if you depend upon Medicaid, you may need special assistance to get treatment.

As of 1994, four drugs that act to slow HIV have been approved for use in the United States. More drugs are being tested. To find out about experimental treatments, call the AIDS Clinical Trials Information Service at 1-800-TRIALS-A (1-800-874-2572), Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. est. Centers that offer experimental drug treatments for AIDS-related illnesses may not be available everywhere.

Some people who do not understand AIDS may avoid persons who they know are infected with HIV. Some people who are infected have been targets of discrimination in employment, housing, and insurance. Some have been deeply hurt by the reactions of friends and family members. You should be prepared to encounter uncomfortable reactions and to deal with these issues. However, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) can protect you from many forms of discrimination, especially on the job, having a place to live, and getting services available to the public.

Each year, Medical College of Wisconsin physicians care for more than 180,000 patients, representing nearly 500,000 patient visits. Medical College physicians practice at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital, the Milwaukee VA Medical Center, and many other hospitals and clinics in Milwaukee and southeastern Wisconsin.