How long does it take to get results form an HIV test?
Are you asking how long it takes for the HIV virus to show up in the blood or how long it will take to get the test results back? The average incubation time for HIV is 21 days. This is an AVERAGE…the time could be shorter or longer. There is no set time…it varies from person to person. If a person has been exposed to HIV, they should be tested every 3 months for one year. As for getting the test results back, that depends on the test and the facility. In most cases, the results of a serum test will be back in a few days. An oral HIV swab can give a result within a few minutes but that result…whether positive or negative…should be confirmed with a serum test. There is an HIV test that can be resulted within an hour. However, that is usually reserved for healthcare workers who have been exposed on the job and the testing is done on the source patient (that happened to me recently when I was stuck with a dirty needle). Plan on getting tested again when you hit the 3 month mark.
The results of an HIV test are usually ready within a two week period. If they are ready in a short time, you will have to recheck in a week or two. If your result shows negative, and if you have not engaged in any risky behaviour for the last 6 months, you are not currently infected with HIV. If you have had unprotected sex or shared needles or have other risk factors in the last 6 months, you should be tested again. You could still be HIV positive, and pass the HIV on to other people, even though your test is negative. A negative test does not mean that you are immune to HIV. Some people who have a negative test may be tempted to continue risk behaviours, believing “It can’t happen to me.” If you continue unsafe behaviour, you are still at risk. If your test result shows positive, you are infected with the HIV virus. This does not necessarily mean that you have AIDS. A person with HIV is infected for life.
Hello there, I am confused as i don’t know if your are confused about how quickly the actual HIV test was. Or if your have to wait 3 months for an accurate result? I like you have done some stupid things in the past when it comes to protective sex, mainly due to alcohol. Even though this is no excuse, i should have known better and used protection! So I’m not going to lecture you! I just hope you have learnt your lesson just as i have!! The actual blood test for HIV generally takes 2-7 days to process and for you to get your results. In some cases certain sexual health clinics provide ‘rapid HIV’ tests where you can have a test and get your results on the same day. But HIV is more complex than other STD’s, it is very smart! It can stay undetected in your blood for 3 months. So if you had unprotected sex with a girl who was HIV positive and you got tested the day after, a blood test would say negative! Even though you could have HIV.
