ELISA/Western blot tests for HIV - Overview

Alternative Names

HIV testing

Definition of ELISA/Western blot tests for HIV:

HIV ELISA/Western blot is a set of blood tests used to diagnose chronic infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

How the test is performed:

A blood sample is needed. For information on how this is done, see: Venipuncture.

How to prepare for the test:

No preparation is necessary.

How the test will feel:

When the needle is inserted to draw blood, some people feel moderate pain, while others feel only a prick or stinging sensation. Afterward, there may be some throbbing.

Why the test is performed:

Testing for HIV infection is done for many reasons, including:

Screening people who want to be tested
Screening people in high-risk groups (men who have sex with men, injection drug users and their sexual partners, and commercial sex workers)
Screening people with certain conditions and infections (such as Kaposi's sarcoma or Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia)
Screening pregnant women to help prevent them from passing the virus to the baby
When a patient has an unusual infection

Blood test

Reviewed last on: 6/9/2011
David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; Jatin M. Vyas, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor in Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Assistant in Medicine, Division of Infectious Disease, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Dewar R, Goldstein D, Maldarelli F. Diagnosis of human immunodeficiency virus infection. In: Mandell GL, Bennett GE, Dolin R, eds. Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases. 7th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone; 2009:chap 119.

Sax PE, Walker BD. Immunopathogenesis of human immunodeficiency infection. In: Goldman L, Ausiello D, eds. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders Elsevier; 2007:chap 408.

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