Can a hepatitis test have a false positive or negative?

I was tested a year ago when I was pregnant and it was negative for all types, but now a recent test showed to be positive for C. I haven't done anything to get it. I haven't hardly left my house because I have a baby, and my husband is negative. My liver enzymes are slightly elevated. Which test could have been wrong?

Can a hepatitis test have a false positive or negative?
Yes there can be false positives and negatives. If you want to know for sure, get a viral load test (HCV PCR RNA). If you have chronic active hep c (HCV) it will show a detectable number. 85% or so of the people who have become exposed to HCV go on to have chronic active infection. HCV does not lie dormant (that's a myth). What it does is slowly and usually without symptoms begin to damage the liver (called fibrosis or scarring). That's why HCV is called the Silent Killer. Also, if your husband has not tested positive for it by now, he hasn't acquired it from when his mom gave birth. Perinatal transmission is less than 5% (see the link below). Sexual transmission is 1-3% among stable, monogamous couples. Get the viral load test to be sure. Best wishes.
Reply:Hi, yes sometimes test shows false negative or positive,i have work in medical for many years and yes it can and do happen at times ,well about 13 years ago my brother in law was dying and needed blood,so my husband and i donated blood and at that time my husband had the flue with fever,and his test came positive for hep c,,, and my blood was negative ,so they repeated his test about 2 weeks later and it came out negative .just to be sure take another hep c test,and if it come out positive again just start to get the treatment that you need ,and if it come out negative that would be great. My sister have been living with hep c for over 30 years she got it from a blood transfusion that she got when she was a baby ,So don't blame yourself for anything .


I hope that everything goes well for you.





Good Luck


Leena
Reply:Nothing is 100%, but I suspect you contracted the hepC recently or at least after the tests a year ago.
Reply:I am not a doctor by any means at all. But I am the daughter inlaw of someone who passed away a year ago from Hep C (she was unable to get a liver transplant and it was to late for treatment by the time they found it) . Anyway, she had test for Hep C off and on throughout her life and then one day she went for it and it showed positive. She had a blood transfustion in 1979 (when my husband was born during labor) and it was before they were required to test blood for those types of things. That is how they "guessed" she got it. It had laid dormat for that many years before it showed a positive test. My husband has been checked once a year ever since she found out she had it (which was 11 years ago). His test is still negative, but there is always fear in the back of my mind that she had it maybe even prior to giving birth to him. I am very sorry that you tested positive. There are cures for it now days, my best friends father is in remission from it now. I have two other friends of mine that both have it and they got it from their mother who had it not knowing at the time she gave birth to them. Neither of them found out until they were in their twenties that they had it though. One of them is also in remission now. But I just wanted to let you know that it can lay dormat for years and years before it shows positive sometimes. My wishes are with you.
Reply:Hi, I've lived with Hep C for over 30 yrs now. I've also been through treatment 2x's with no remission. As for your question, of course there is always a chance of a false test. But if your liver enzymes are also elevated, that indicates liver inflammation. It is sometimes impossible to tell where Hep C can be contracted from. It has a slight chance of being passed from person to person by saliva or tears as well as sex, IV drug use or any type of blood products that were contaminated. If I was you, and your doctor should do this anyhow, ask for a referral to an Gastroenterologist (A GI doctor). They specialize in the liver %26amp; get furthur tests done. I come from the school that it is better safe to double check then just ignore it. If you are positive you want to check on your options for treatment as soon as possible. A GI doctor will provide you with any answers %26amp; all the tests to determine whether you are positive or not %26amp; how to proceed.


Good luck.
Reply:When they tested you a year ago when you were pregnant. They only test for type A and B. Not, C. The same thing happened to me, I have hep c. I found out about 1 month after I had just been tested by my OB when I was pregnant. After I had found out from another Dr. I thought they were crazy because I had just been tested, right? So, I went back to my OB Dr. and asked him how this could be and come to find out they only test for A and B. Alot, of people just assume that you are tested for everything but that is just not the case. Ask the Dr. that tested you while you were pregnant and see what they say. Good Luck and God Bless.