Chances of false negative herpes blood test?

[amor]

I have gotten what I thought were cold sores in the past but only in the winter and I bite my lips a lot in the winter, so not 100% sure if they are really cold sores but always assumed they were.

I recently got tested and both hsv 1&2 came back negative < 0.91. I am reading there are a lot of false negatives, but that they might be due to not waiting long enough to take the test or because of antiviral use. Neither of those is the case for me.

What do you think the percentage would be of this being correct? Is the 70% number for this case? Higher? Lower?

Thanks! I don't want to transmit to any partners if i have it.

[mr_hopp]

The reported sensitivity and specificity of herpes IgG tests can vary, and different studies yield different results. IgG tests is the industry standard blood test for herpes, but like you said, there are enough false positives and false negatives to not give a definitive enough answer. This is why I always suggest getting a Western Blot test, which is the gold standard and will give you unmatched accuracy. It costs a couple hundred bucks, but it's worth it for peace of mind and knowing for sure whether you have it or not. The only thing about blood tests that is important to know is that for them to be accurate, you need to wait 3-4 months (via the CDC) to give antibodies enough time to build to detectable levels (the exact time frame varies depending on where you look; Western Blot literature says 2 months). Even the best blood tests available do nothing for detecting recent infections.

[amor]

Yes this person believes they have had it for a multiple years, so the months shouldn't really matter.

I also read that most false negatives are either because the test is too early or antivirals.  Also, read there are a lot of 1-4-ish range that could go either way.

If you had to put a guess on it, would you think this person is positive or negative?  

Def interested in the western blott but wont be able to get the results very quickly so just trying to be as informed as I can be