HIV testing is extremely essential to ensure that you are not infected with HIV. Given the fatal nature of the disease, it is imperative that you get yourself tested for the disease, especially in cases where you might have been exposed to shared injecting equipment, have had unprotected sex or have been exposed to the disease in any manner or during any medical procedure.

Waiting Period

It is important to note that while a person infected with the virus becomes infectious immediately, an immediate test for HIV may or may not yield an accurate result. Hence, doctors advice patients to wait for a period of time before going for the test in order to avoid any inaccuracy.

Waiting period in most cases depends on the type of test that you want to adopt for testing presence of the infection. The usual or preferred waiting period before HIV testing is usually three months. This is because the antibodies, which are required for testing, need anywhere between 6 weeks to 3 months to develop.

Test for HIV, in certain cases, is possible and can be accurately done only when these antibodies are present in the blood. It is essential to ensure that such people take all possible care not to infect others by practicing safe sex and avoiding sharing of drug injections during this waiting period.

Common HIV Tests and the Steps Involved

There are different steps involved in the method used by doctors to test for HIV. The first step is called ELISA, where the test actually detects the HIV antibodies in the blood stream. As mentioned earlier, it is important to wait for at least 3 months before taking this test to ensure the accuracy of results.

When the ELISA test for HIV is negative, the suspected HIV infected person can breathe easy as no further tests are required. However, when it is found to be positive, the individual has to be tested further to confirm the results.

The second step is called the Western Blot, which is essentially used for confirming the test results of ELISA. In this particular step, the test detects the protein bands that are peculiar or specific to the blood stream of an HIV infected individual. It is important to use the above two steps in combination to ensure absolute accuracy of HIV testing.

However, the only drawback of this type of HIV testing is the waiting period, which may be too long in certain cases. Under these circumstances, there are various rapid tests that you can opt for, which use the same principle as the ELISA and Western Blot but are rapid in terms of accessing the results. Rapid tests for HIV include tests like the Antigen tests, fourth generation tests, PCR tests as well as home tests and home sampling.

Quick HIV Tests

Antigen tests are conducted immediately after HIV infection, where the test detects the presence or absence of antigens, which are essentially triggers of those antibodies that cause the infection. However, these tests are not as conclusive as HIV testing for antibodies and hence are used only for general diagnostic purposes.

The fourth generation test for HIV, on the other hand, is a combination of the antigen test and the antibody test, which is definitely more accurate and rapid. Duo tests and Tri-Dot as well as p24 tests are fourth generation tests. They test for antibodies as well as p24 antigen, which make them better suited for detecting recent infection.

Like any other screening test for HIV, a positive (reactive) result can be confirmed with one or two supplementary tests. The fourth generation tests are excellent as far as their specifications and sensitivities are concerned. However, the solitary problem with such tests is the fact that they are often not available at all testing centers.

The PCR test is one that tries and detects the genetic material of the infection rather than the antibody, which ensures that you can identify the presence of the virus in the blood within 2-3 weeks of the infection. The only drawback of this type of HIV testing is that they are expensive and very difficult to interpret.

Categories of HIV Tests – Mandatory, Voluntary and Routine

Mandatory HIV tests refer to the one where you have no say over whether you should be tested or not. In other words, it is an enforced test that you cannot refuse. Though some governments try to use it as a way of combating HIV and AIDS, this is an unsuitable way for the same as it not only restricts the freedom of choice of a person, but also causes stigmatization and discrimination for anyone who has positive test results.

Where a person actively and freely chooses to opt for an HIV test, it is called voluntary testing. Unlike the mandatory tests, here you are free to opt for the test or not. When tests for HIV are offered to a specific group on a routine basis, it’s called routine testing. For instance, such tests can be offered to everyone coming within the purview of a certain population like people in the age bracelets of 40-55, pregnant women, etc.

Such tests are also called ‘opt-out’ screening, as they are automatically performed unless the individual in question raises an objection and decides to ‘opt out’. A person’s verbal or written consent are required to conduct both routine and voluntary HIV tests.

Routine opt-out policies have been found to be more effective for screening a particular population for HIV, both on ethical grounds as well as from the point of view of public health.

Conclusion

Many people get frightened at the mere thought of taking an HIV test as they fear social ostracisation in case they test positive. However, rather than worrying about the likelihood of having HIV for many months, sometimes even years, it’s better to take the test and know the results.

One word of caution though – always take the advice of a medical practitioner as only a professional can guide you and even offer counseling sessions to nullify apprehensions and fear, if any. So, make an informed decision when you opt for HIV testing.

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