HSV & EBV

[DeMar]

Hi,

I found blood report I got 8-10 years ago, which I didn't read at the time and noticed I tested positive to Epstein Barr.

Then last year I had a complete shock when I tested positive to hsv2. I had a second test which gave me the same result.

Is it possible that the hsv test can wrongly detect the ebv and therefore give a positive result? Or vice versa?

Thanks

 

[Flowerteacher55]

Hello! 

This is a GREAT question! 

Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) is a member of the herpes virus family, and is very common. EBV causes mononucleosis, which usually infects people of older teen to mid twenties ranges (I got mono when I was 20!).

According the US Center for Disease Control (CDC): 

"Many people become infected with EBV in childhood. EBV infections in children usually do not cause symptoms, or the symptoms are not distinguishable from other mild, brief childhood illnesses. People who get symptoms from EBV infection, usually teenagers or adults, get better in two to four weeks. However, some people may feel fatigued for several weeks or even months.

After you get an EBV infection, the virus becomes latent (inactive) in your body. In some cases, the virus may reactivate. This does not always cause symptoms, but people with weakened immune systems are more likely to develop symptoms if EBV reactivates."

So, it is possible that you contracted EBV and did not know it, and it has been dormant in your body all these years. There are several ways to test for EBV, click here to read about them and which test your test results contained: https://www.cdc.gov/epstein-barr/laboratory-testing.html

The link above also says: "The presence of antibodies to both VCA and EBNA suggests past infection (from several months to years earlier). Since over 90% of adults have been infected with EBV, most adults will show antibodies to EBV from infection years earlier. High or elevated antibody levels may be present for years and are not diagnostic of recent infection."

While I was researching, I came across a scientific article that explained the false positives that can occur when examining HSV and EPV antibodies, but the scientific jargon used was so advanced I honestly had no idea how to interpret the data and overall takeaways! However, here is a link to the article! https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2725526/

I hope this helps! 🙂 

Blessings,

grace 

[DeMar]

Thanks Grace. Sounds like it's unlikely to cause a hsv+ result but that's ok. All part of the journey of acceptance.