Expert: Kristen Brannock, MPH - 5/15/2008

Question
hello there my name is raj and am from India, I am grieving to death due to a deadly mistake i'd done 1 1\2 yr ago. I was 23 then,always thrill seeking on all accounts  and i had a bad company around me. Any how, it so happened then that my friends brought a house wife( to be precise, she was a prostitute involved in multiple sex relationships, which i later came to know)to my home where we were partying that time at night. Unfortunately, neither me or nobody had a single condom with us. Upon intoxication it so happened we went just crazy and three of us  had a deep penetrating sex with her and i was the last one to finish(consider, without a condom).  3 months after this incident i  went to a nearby hospital and checked my blood and most fortunately it turned out to be negative. Now after almost 2 yrs. the thought is haunting me back as i am doubting on the truth of that test. Can you please help me with these questions? my doubts are how much is that 7$(350rupees) test is dependable? How can i perfectly verify whether i am  -ve or +ve ? How much that test (Elisa/Western blot) will cost me? Is it still too early for me to diagnose it?  any helpful suggestions/advice is most welcome to this repenting young man. Thanks for ur precious time sir

Answer
If you took an HIV test 3 months after the incident that was negative, then you are probably HIV negative. Some people take longer to seroconvert so if you were to test again now, you would have your definitive result. Yes, the tests are reliable as long as you test outside of the window period.

I dont know how much it costs in India. I'm sorry. It's free in the US.