We are currently looking into the feasibility of offering this testing on a limited basis. It should be available soon.

This is a measure of how much replicating HIV is found in the circulating blood. In a HIV positive person this usually varies from a few hundred to a few million copies/ml. In patients on HIV treatment, the viral load is an accurate measure of how effective treatment is. The aim on treatment is to reach an "undetectable" level. Please note having an undetectable viral load does not mean the person is not infectious – he/she can still transmit HIV to others.

A viral load test, or HIV RNA assay, measures the amount of virus circulating in your bloodstream at a given time. This gives us a better picture of how active your HIV infection is. High viral load values are associated with a more rapid progression to AIDS and indicate a need for more aggressive treatment. Additionally, the viral load will respond to changes in your medications within 2 weeks, so we can quickly assess how well the medicines are fighting HIV.

There are two ways to receive HIV testing available at the Student Health and Wellness Center. The Meadows Center offers free and anonymous testing by appointment. Call (940) 565-2787 for an appointment. HIV testing is also available at the Student Health and Wellness Laboratory. A doctor's order (clinical provider) is required. Call (940) 565-2333 to schedule a clinical provider appointment.

Another important measure in an HIV+ person is the HIV viral load. This HIV FAQ explains what the HIV viral load is and why it is important.

AIDS Services offers free anonymous or confidential HIV blood testing at the Health Center on Thursdays from 1:00-4:30, with results available in 2 weeks. Anonymous testing means your name is not on the test, and confidential testing means your name is on the test, but the results are kept secure. Orasure, an oral HIV test, is also offered for $30 with results available in 3-5 working days. For more information, or to make an appointment, call Health Education at 458-8322.

this time, two drugs in the neuraminidase inhibitor class, oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza), reduce the severity and duration of the seasonal influenza if administered within 48 hours after symptoms begin. Clinical data is limited for utilization of these drugs with H5N1 viral infections but laboratory data indicates that if administered early, the avian influenza virus will be susceptible.

It is now believed that HIV stays hidden throughout the bodies of people infected with the virus in “reservoirs” comprised of long-lived blood cells. The cells are infected with HIV, yet the virus is dormant – or latent – within these cells, so the cells appear to be “normal” and thus escape the reach of anti-HIV drugs and the immune system.

For a confidential HIV antibody test you give your name and contact information to a test counselor, health care provider or doctor and the test result is entered into your medical records. If the HIV antibody test results are positive, the health care provider must send your name and information to the State Department of Health (DOH); the State DOH then sends it to your local DOH.

In both non-nominal HIV testing and anonymous HIV testing the name of the person being tested is not used. However, there are some differences between these two types of testing for HIV infection. Although it varies by province and territory, in general, the differences are that in anonymous HIV testing, the person ordering the test usually does not know and does not want to know the identity of the person being tested.

The laboratory consists of a waiting room and several small specimen collection rooms. When you arrive at the laboratory, indicate to the lab staff at the front desk that a medical order has been faxed in for you with your name or code name on it (depending how you set up your test). If there are other customers around, rest assured that no one knows which test you are taking except the laboratory staff. The lab collects specimens for 100's of types of tests at each of their collection centers.

New Jersey law does not specifically address whether parental consent is needed for a person under the age of 18 to get an HIV test. N.J.S.A. 9:17A-4 assures that a person under age 18 can be tested for a sexually transmitted infection without parental consent if they have any reason to think they might be infected. Because of the ambiguity concerning the law’s application to HIV, some health care providers will test for HIV without parental consent while others will not.

Answer: This cannot be made mandatory as it would undermine confidentiality as a pre-requisite for testing. But if individuals request consented voluntary testing, it should be encouraged. Unfortunately in India, given the lack of code of conduct in reporting test results, it may be possible to "purchase" a negative result.

Viral load is the medical term used to describe the amount of HIV present in your bloodstream. This may range from a small amount to a large amount. Knowing how much HIV is present in blood shows how well your immune system is going to deal with the virus. You find out what your viral load is by having a simple blood test. The lower your viral load result the better.

Repeat tests of a blood sample can give results that vary by a factor of 3. This means that a meaningful change would be a drop to less than 1/3 or an increase to more than 3 times the previous test result. For example, a change from 200,000 to 600,000 is within the normal variability of the test. A drop from 50,000 to 10,000 would be significant. The most important change is to reach an undetectable viral load. Viral load changes are often described as "log" changes.

Some scientists think that only 2% of the HIV in your body is in the blood. The viral load test does not measure how much HIV is in body tissues like the lymph nodes, spleen, or brain. HIV levels in lymph tissue go down when blood levels go down, but not at the same time or the same rate. Viral levels in semen seem to be unrelated to blood levels. The viral load test results can be thrown off if your body is fighting an infection, or if you have just received an immunization (like a flu shot).

Even if you are on treatment or your tests show that you have very low levels of HIV in your blood, the virus is never totally eradicated and you are therefore still capable of infecting others. Some drugs do not penetrate the genitals and disable HIV as easily as they do in the blood. This means that while you may have little active virus showing up on tests, there may still be quite a lot of HIV in your semen or vaginal fluids.

No. Having an "undetectable" viral load means that there is very little virus floating around in your blood. This usually means that you are taking your medicines like you should and that the virus isn't reproducing, but you are still HIV+ and can infect someone else if you don't use safe sex practices.

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A: Yes. Perhaps you or a family member have a diagnosis and are looking for answers to questions like, "What type of ichthyosis do I have?" or "What are the chances that I will pass ichthyosis on to my child?" Contact the Foundation for available testing resources.

There are several testing methods available that use urine, hair, oral fluids, and sweat (patch). These methods vary in cost, reliability, drugs detected, and detection period. Schools can determine their needs and choose the method that best suits their requirements, as long as the testing kits are from a reliable source.

No one can be sure that Tamiflu® will be effective against a pandemic influenza virus. Although the federal government keeps a certain amount of medical supplies and antivirals on hand, no country has enough antivirals to protect all its citizens. Some antivirals may be helpful in an influenza pandemic. If these drugs become available, they would be given to priority groups based on the guidance from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that is current at that time.

Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. Viral hepatitis is inflammation of the liver caused by a virus. There are five identified types of viral hepatitis and each one is caused by a different virus. In the United States, hepatitis A, hepatitis B and hepatitis C are the most common types. Hepatitis A is caused by hepatitis A virus (HAV), hepatitis B is caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C is caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV).

The level of virus in the blood stream or the quantitative PCR test for viral RNA in the case of Hepatitis C does not really tell us about the ability to resolve the infection with therapy, nor does it tell how severe the infection is. It may impart some risk of transmissibility i.e. the higher viral titers may be easier to transmit.

No approved HIV test kit will give you a result at home. There is a kit available that is designed for you to collect a sample of your blood at home. Then you send the sample to a laboratory where it is tested for HIV.