TESTING FOR HIV
Why Get Tested
The only way to know your HIV status is to get tested. Knowing your HIV status gives you powerful information to keep you and your partner healthy. If your test result is positive, you can take medicine to treat HIV to help you live a long, healthy life and protect others. If your test result is negative, you can take actions to prevent HIV.
Everyone aged 13 to 64 should get tested for HIV at least once as part of routine health care.
You should get tested at least once a year if:
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You're a man who has had sex with another man.
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You've had anal or vaginal sex with someone who has HIV.
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You've had more than one sex partner since your last HIV test.
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You've shared needles, syringes, or other drug injection equipment.
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You've been diagnosed with or treated for another sexually transmitted infection, hepatitis, or tuberculosis (TB).
Pregnant Women
Pregnant women should get tested for HIV during each pregnancy. Testing pregnant people and treating those who have HIV is a highly effective way to prevent babies being born with HIV.
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There are three types of HIV tests: antibody tests, antigen/antibody tests, and nucleic acid tests (NAT). Antibodies are produced by your immune system when you're exposed to viruses like HIV. Antigens are foreign substances that cause your immune system to activate. If you have HIV, an antigen called p24 is produced even before antibodies develop.
Antibody Test
An antibody test looks for antibodies to HIV in your blood or oral fluid. Antibody tests that use blood from a vein can detect HIV sooner than tests done with blood from a finger stick or with oral fluid.
Antigen/Antibody Test
An antigen/antibody test looks for both HIV antibodies and antigens. Antigens are substances that are new to the host body and act in a manner to activate the immune system. This lab test involves drawing blood from a vein.
Nucleic Acid Tests (NAT)
This HIV blood test is also known as the HIV RNA or the viral load test. The test scans the blood of an individual for the virus. This test can tell if a person has HIV or how much virus is present in the blood (HIV viral load test)
