should i retest?

Hi Anon,

Thank you for sharing your question with the EmpowHER community.

It depends on what kind of test you had. There's a period of time after a person is infected during which they won't test positive. This is called the “hiv window period.” The window period can be from 9 days to 3-6 months, depending on the person's body and on the HIV-test that's used.

Antibody tests ("Rapid" tests) — give a positive result based on antibodies to HIV, not the virus itself.

• 2-8 weeks (up to 2 months) after infection, most people will have enough antibodies to test positive 
• 12 weeks (3 months) after infection, about 97% of people will have enough antibodies to test positive 

Antigen tests (RNA tests) — show a positive result based on the presence of the virus. These tests are more expensive than anitbody tests, so are not offered in as many places.

• 1-3 weeks after infection, there will be enough viral material for a positive result

Home testing kits — As of Fall 2012, there are two "home tests" which have been approved by the FDA for use in the U.S.:

• OraQuick by OraSure is an antibody test that you complete at home, so the window period is the same as described above.
• Home Access HIV-1 by Home Access Health Corp is not actually a test, but a sample-collection kit. You use it to collect a blood sample which you then mail to a lab for processing.

PCR tests (Polymerase chain reaction tests) — also test for the actual virus. This type of test is often used for testing the viral load of HIV-positive people, as well as testing babies born to HIV-positive mothers. You can read more about PCR tests on the AIDS.gov website.

• 2-3 weeks after infection, there will be enough viral material for a positive result

 I hope this helps.

Be well,

~Gillette