Equivocal Result

[BB4eva]

I did the IgG on 11/11/2020 and tested positive for HSV1 (which I have had for years) 32.80 and my result for HSV2 was .91, which means equivocal. My doctor said that it could be a lab error or early signs of HSV2 infection. I will be retested in January by my doctor. I also tested positive for chlamydia and BV (bacterial vaginosis) after a Pap smear was done on 11/9/2020. I was given medication for the chlamydia and BV.

I have no symptoms, no sores, no nothing. My possible herpes exposure was 27 days before I got my blood drawn on 11/11/2020 for the herpes IgG test. The condom broke a couple of times.

I am worried because I know the IgG test is the correct test for differentiating between HSV1 antibodies and HSV2 antibodies. I have been getting tested for years and my HSV2 results have been negative over the years despite my positive HSV1 status. My first HSV2 result in 2016 was .37, in 2017 it was .56, in 2019 it was .58 and now in 2020 it jumped to .91.

So I am very nervous since I have never had an equivocal result before and I have no symptoms.

A few questions:

1) Could my positive chlamydia infection and BV infection have throw off my HSV2 IgG test and caused an equivocal result?

2) Should I get a Western blot test at this point or wait for my doctor to do another IgG test again in January?

3) I have also read that after an equivocal result, you can get retested 2 to 4 weeks after equivocal result to check result again. Should I get retested at another office and see what those results I get at a different facility?

Ever since I got my equivocal result I have been a wreck. I suffer from anxiety and have suffered panic attacks due to this uncertainty and possible mistaken test result.

[Terri Warren]

1) Could my positive chlamydia infection and BV infection have throw off my HSV2 IgG test and caused an equivocal result?

No.

2) Should I get a Western blot test at this point or wait for my doctor to do another IgG test again in January?

I would wait and see what the test shows in January before you spend the money on a western blot. I would recommend that you be tested 12 weeks from the time the condom broke, for greatest accuracy.

3) I have also read that after an equivocal result, you can get retested 2 to 4 weeks after equivocal result to check result again. Should I get retested at another office and see what those results I get at a different facility?

You could retest with another lab but if not enough time has gone by since the encounter where the condom broke, you still can’t be fully reassured about the results, right?

Terri

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