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how long to get tested

daveburning

By daveburning
in Newly Diagnosed

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Hugo Honeycomb Member

Hugo

Posted
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Antibodies and waiting for testing..

Yes, the long-term IgG antibodies don't appear right away. They can show up within 2 or 3 weeks in some people, but to get reliable results, a wait of at least 12 weeks is recommended. By that time some 98% of people with a new infection will have sero-converted, in other words, they will have detectable antibodies.

Having said that, there's nothing wrong with getting tested before 12 weeks, but don't take a negative result as being accurate. On the other hand, a positive result is conclusive.

The optimum test is a type-specific culture done on an active blister or "wet" lesion since it will tell that the virus is present and will tie to a specific location as well. The down-side is that the time window to get reliable culture results is fairly narrow so there is a fairly high incidence of false negatives.

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daisy#1 Honeycomb Member

daisy#1

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Hugo, a positive is not always conclusive.

The only way to be POSITIVE you have the virus is from a culture from an outbreak. Blood tests can lead you to believe you are positive, but they can be false positives in certain cases.

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Hugo Honeycomb Member

Hugo

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Blood test reliability..

Hi, Daisy. Yes, false positives do happen. You, you are right, so perhaps I should have given a more detailed initial answer.

There are different herpes blood tests. The IgM tests for the initial, first-responder antibodies are not very type specific and are, indeed, prone to false positives due to cross-reactivity. That means, for example, if you have an HSV1 infection, you might get a high enough cross reactive HSV2 titer to think that you also have HSV2, when that is not actually the case. That would be a false positive.

Modern IgG ELISA type tests such as the HerpeSelect for the long-term permanent antibodies are much better with regard to type specificity so false positives due to that effect are unlikely. Some authorities on testing suggest that if the positive titers are under 3.0, that additional testing is probably warranted with an alternate test such as the Western Blot as confirmation.

As we've learned, the only thing we can say with absolute certainty about herpes is that we can't say anything with absolute certainty about herpes. :-)

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shocked2hear Honeycomb Member

shocked2hear

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umm, once you have the virus, your body will start producing the antibodies, so you can take the test whenever you feel like it

This is not correct. It takes 4 to 6 weeks after the initial outbreak for the antibodies to produce. If you do not have an outbreak then it would be after the exposure, but no that is not true.

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shocked2hear Honeycomb Member

shocked2hear

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four to six weeks would get you the correct results for the blood test and the most accurate test is the IgG. This way you know which one you have and it can tell if you have both and will tell if the results are inclusive and the test has to be retaken over again.

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WaxedWrong Acknowledged Support Member

WaxedWrong

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This is not correct. It takes 4 to 6 weeks after the initial outbreak for the antibodies to produce. If you do not have an outbreak then it would be after the exposure, but no that is not true.

you are incorrect- and correct. ""Once a virus enters our body, antibodies are produced to fight it. Antibodies are found in the blood stream and are important in the body's natural defence (immune response). They continue to be produced for several weeks after the initial episode. A blood test can usually detect herpes antibodies 4 – 6 weeks after the first infection""

antibodies do not take 4-6 weeks to produce.

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purplerayne Honeycomb Member

purplerayne

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I dread going to the dr to get the test and i keep hearing the best thing is to do a culture, I always seem to have a break out at the same time as my period...

So there is a blood test I can take too?

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JRTJRT Established Member

JRTJRT

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Yes there is a blood test and it is more accurate than the culture. The antibody specific is the best one, the IGg.

Hi thanks. Sorry but can you elaborate...

Is the "antibody specific" blood test the test that differentiates between HSV1 and HSV2?

Thank you

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hopingseeking Established Member

hopingseeking

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Hi thanks. Sorry but can you elaborate...

Is the "antibody specific" blood test the test that differentiates between HSV1 and HSV2?

Thank you

Yes it is.

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