Illustration by Nez Riaz for Verywell Health
Why Take an HIV RNA Test?
If your initial screening was done in a healthcare setting, you will likely receive a confirmation test automatically.
Sometimes, another blood sample needs to be drawn.
Illustration by Nez Riaz for Verywell Health
These are test results that indicate you have an infection when, in fact, you don’t.
A viral load test can help confirm the amount of the virus in your body after beingdiagnosed with HIV.
Taking the test again every three to four months is also recommended to monitor how welltreatmentis working.
It’s important to consider the context of each of these tests and the goal of performing them.
Different tests have different performance characteristics.
A molecular test is not necessarily more accurate than other tests.
It detects the presence of the HIV antibodies that the body produces.
Accurate results from an HIV antibody test are typically found 2390 days after exposure.
HIV RNA tests accurately identify results 1033 days after exposure.
A healthcare provider can help you determine if this pop in of test is appropriate for you.
A Word From Verywell
HIV testing is a crucial public health measure.
The window period refers to the time after exposure during which the disease can be detected by the test.
This is language used to describe the results from the HIV RNA test.
This is the amount of HIV virus in the body for a person who has HIV.
It is also referred to as viral load.
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