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5 Years of Indeterminate Test Results
May 2, 2008
Hello,
5 years ago I had an indeterminate test result from an HIV test. I was retested 90 days later with the same result, indeterminate.
I was then tested for another strain of HIV and tested negative.
They waited an additional 30 days and retested again and the results were still indeterminate.
I was then referred to an infectious diseases doctor who diagnosed me with HIV. No detectable Viral Load was ever present.
After 1 year of seeing him, he put me on Sustiva and Epzicom. I based the HIV diagnosis on him because he was the "expert."
For the past 4 1/2 years I have been on Epzicom and Sustiva.
I recently had to change doctors because of a change in medical coverage and this doctor redid the entire battery of tests. This test result 5+ years later still came back as indeterminate so they are saying based on their findings that I am HIV negative.
I feel confused as one doctor said I was positive -- prescribed medications with no viral load -- and now this new doctor is saying I was never positive to begin with because someone who has been "positive" for 5 years would not continually test INDETERMINATE on the HIV test.
I'm confused.
Any suggestions? I'm at a total loss. Any help you can give is greatly appreciated.
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Response from Dr. Frascino
Hello,
I absolutely agree with your new doctor. You are and have always been HIV negative. I'm shocked your first doctor "diagnosed" you with HIV based apparently only on a repeatedly "indeterminate" HIV test! That is malpractice as far as I'm concerned. Do you know any good lawyers? You just may have an excellent case against Dr. Clueless. We have known for many years that a number of HIV-negative people will continue to test indeterminate on Western Blot testing. The reasons for this are complex, but may involve cross-reacting antibodies and other immunological mechanisms. The critical point is that with repeatedly indeterminate Western Blot tests and an undetectable viral load, you should never have been diagnosed HIV positive, let alone put on potent and potentially toxic antiretroviral drugs. I do hope you will continue to pursue this matter so that the infectious diseases doctor doesn't potentially harm other HIV-negative folks!
Dr. Bob
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