Dear Doc, I have been reading your answers quite regularly and I need your help with the following queries .

1. It has been mentioned that WB is more accurate than ELISA in early stages of Infection and is able to detect HIV infection pattern that serial ELISA would miss. But at the same time , it has also been mentioned that ELISA is a very sensitive test whereas WB is a highly specific test. So for those who cannot wait, will the WB test give an early indication ?

2. I am trying to analyse the following test results and any help will be highly appreciated

Elisa ( For HIV 1 and 2 ) = Negative.

The details of Western Blot ( done on my insistence) are as follows :

SGP 120 ( For HIV 1 and group O ) = Positive / Negative,

P 24 ( For HIV 1 and 2 ) = Positive / Negative ,

P 31 and P 17 ( For HIV 1 and 2 ) = Negative ,

GP 41 ( HIV 1 ) = Negative,

GP 36 and SGP 105 ( For HIV 2 ) = Negative

Is the above test indicative of Early HIV infection or is it indicative of HIV O infection ? What could it be ?

3. Is there 50 chance that anything may be cross reacting on the test giving the above result ?

4. If above pattern is seen , it has been mentioned to re test within 4 -6 weeks instead of 3 and 6 months can I assume the above still holds true ?

Given the indeterminate results on the western blot, and the pattern presented, it is possible that this is early HIV infection, and followup blood testing is warranted.