When taking an antibody test, what does a negative, positive or indeterminate test result mean?
When a person gets an antibody test for HIV, the first test that is done is the ELISA test, also called the EIA. If the ELISA test is negative, this is considered a negative result, and confirmatory tests are not necessary. A negative result means that no antibodies were found. If the ELISA test is repeatedly positive, it must be confirmed with a confirmatory test (usually a Western Blot or an IFA test). This second test can be done from the same tube of blood. You must test positive on both the ELISA test and the confirmatory test, to be considered HIV positive. If both the ELISA test and the confirmatory test are positive, this is considered a positive result. This means that antibodies were found, and the person is infected with HIV. If the ELISA test is repeatedly positive but the confirmatory test is negative, this is considered a negative result overall, and this means that no antibodies were found. ELISA tests are either positive or negative. Western Blot tests however, can be p
