Things To Do if An HIV Test is Positive?

The main method for detecting HIV infection is to test for antibodies to HIV. Survey on HIV (including anonymous) is carried out in medical institutions of all forms of ownership with the informed consent of the patient under conditions of strict confidentiality, as in the case of examination of minors under the age of 14 years – at the request of or with the consent of his legal representative. F ree HIV testing Los Angeles is voluntary and is conducted with mandatory pre- and post-test counseling on HIV prevention issues.

Obligatory medical examination for HIV infection is subject to:

Donors of blood, blood plasma, sperm and other biological fluids, tissues, and organs (including sperm).
Pregnant women.
Children born to HIV-infected mothers.
The following employees are subject to a mandatory medical examination for detecting HIV infection upon admission to work and periodic medical examinations:
Doctors, paramedical and junior medical personnel of AIDS prevention and control centers, healthcare institutions, specialized departments and structural units of healthcare institutions engaged in direct examination, diagnosis, treatment, maintenance, as well as forensic examination and other work with people infected with human immunodeficiency virus, having direct contact with them;
Doctors, paramedical and junior medical personnel of laboratories (groups of laboratory personnel) who carry out an examination of the population for HIV infection and study of blood and biological materials obtained from people infected with human immunodeficiency virus;
Scientists, specialists, employees and workers of research institutions, enterprises (manufactures) for the manufacture of medical immunobiological preparations and other organizations whose work is associated with materials containing the human immunodeficiency virus;
Medical workers in hospitals (departments) of a surgical profile upon admission to work and thereafter 1 time per year;
Persons who are in military service and enlisted in military educational institutions and in military service upon conscription and contract, upon conscription for military service, upon admission to contract service, upon admission to military universities of ministries and departments that establish restrictions on the admission of persons with HIV infection;
Foreign citizens and stateless persons when applying for citizenship or residence permit, or a work permit in the Russian Federation, when foreign citizens enter the territory of the Russian Federation for a period of more than 3 months.

Populations recommended for HIV antibody testing:

Patients with a number of clinical indications indicating t0he presence of HIV.
Patients with suspected or confirmed diagnosis: drug addiction, sexually transmitted infections, hepatitis B, C, pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis.
Vulnerable groups: homosexual and bisexual, sex workers, clients of sex workers, promiscuous people (promiscuity), and persons in prison.
Recipients of blood products.
Persons who have sex with HIV-infected or sexually transmitted infections.
Health care workers who received microtrauma while performing professional duties.
Patients assisted by a medical professional.
Family members of HIV-infected patients.

REMEMBER: Consenting or refusing HIV testing should not affect the quality of care.

Possible test results and the period of the “seronegative window”:

A positive test result means that a person has HIV antibodies. This suggests that the person is HIV-infected. A doctor’s consultation is required.
A negative test result means that no HIV antibodies were detected. However, a negative test result for antibodies to HIV may not always mean that a person is not infected, because there is a period of “seronegative window.” To develop antibodies in an amount sufficient for detection by the test system, the body needs from two weeks to three months (in rare cases up to a year). In the “window period”, the blood, semen, vaginal secretions and breast milk of an infected person already contain enough virus to infect other people.
Uncertain (doubtful) test result: it is necessary to conduct repeated tests for antibodies to HIV immune or linear blot after 2 weeks, 3 and 6 months. If negative results were obtained then further research is not required. If, after 6 months after the first examination, uncertain results are again obtained, and the patient does not have any risk factors for infection and clinical symptoms of HIV infection, the result is regarded as false positive. Moreover, in the presence of epidemiological and clinical indications, studies are repeated repeatedly as prescribed by the attending physician or epidemiologist. While the final result of the HIV test is unknown, recommendations for behavioral changes are the same as for individuals with a positive test result.