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One of your recent screening tests was positive for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This information explains what HIV is and what it means for you and your pregnancy.
HIV is a virus carried in the blood which targets and weakens the body’s immune system. Without treatment a person with HIV is at risk of developing serious infections and health complications which a healthy immune system would usually prevent or fight off.
Although there is no cure for HIV, treatment today is extremely effective at keeping the virus under control, allowing your immune system to stay strong. Most people living with HIV have a normal life expectancy.
1. Causes
HIV can be passed from:
- person to person during unprotected sex
- a mother to baby during pregnancy, at birth or when breastfeeding
- infected blood by sharing needles
HIV is not spread through everyday contact such as coughing or kissing, or sharing bathrooms, toilets, food, cups, or towels.
2. Protecting your baby
A mother can pass HIV to her baby during pregnancy, at birth or when breastfeeding, resulting in the baby having HIV. Starting HIV treatment as early as possible and taking it as advised by the HIV team makes the
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HIV
What do test results mean?
Getting Tested
To understand what your test results mean, you first have to understand what kind of test is being used and what a "window period" is.
Most HIV screening tests look for HIV antigen (part of the HIV virus) or for HIV antibodies (produced by the person's body), or may look for both. Newer testing strategies use a combination antigen/antibody test. Some testing sites also use a test that looks for genetic material of the HIV virus.
The window period is the period between the time someone is first infected with the HIV virus and the time an HIV test can detect HIV infection. After someone has been infected with the virus it can take about 2 weeks for HIV antigen to be detectable with current antigen tests, and more than 3 weeks to produce enough HIV antibodies to be detected by antibody tests. In a very small number of people, the process takes up to several months.
During the window period, someone might be infected with HIV yet still have a negative result on an HIV test. Here's how that can happen. Let's say you have condomless sex on Saturday night and become infected with HIV. On Monday, you get an HIV test. The test a
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Understanding a positiv Result
What does a positiv HIV result mean?
If you use an antibody test that returns positive, you will need to take another test to ensure the first one was accurate. If you get a positiv result from a community program or a self-test, you should go to a doctor to get tested igen. If you get tested in a lab, and it's positiv, the lab will do the follow-up testing. If the second test fryst vatten positive, it means you have HIV.
What should inom do if I just got diagnosed with HIV?
If you just got diagnosed with virus, you should tell your doctor everything about your medical history and the medications you are currently taking. You should also start taking antiretroviral medications as soon as possible.
When you receive an virus diagnosis, you may experience many emotions—sadness, hopelessness, or anger. Allied health care providers and social service providers can help you work through these feelings and find HIV care and treatment that will help you live a long, healthy life.
HIV treatment can man the virus undetectable. That means there is such a low level of the virus in the blood that it can't be detected by a test. It's important to have an undetectable