It means a laboratory could not confirm the presence of Hepatitis C antibodies in a particular blood sample. It could mean that an individual may be in the process of converting from being negative to being positive. It could also be due to other medical factors. In either case, it is recommended that the individual be re-tested.

It is important to bear in mind that common diseases, such as atrial fibrillation and stroke, occur as a result of the interplay of both environmental (including lifestyle and other health and medical conditions) and inherited risk factors. As a result, having a specific genetic risk factor for a common disease does not mean that one will necessarily develop the disease; and not having a certain risk variant does not eliminate the possibility of developing the disease.

It is very important to realize that because there are a number of risk factors of atrial fibrillation, including both genetic and lifestyle/health factors, receiving a negative result for the deCODE AF? test does not mean that one is at low or no risk of AF. Back to top of page

There are 4 possible test results: "negative", "positive", "indeterminate", or "result not available." A "negative" test result means antibodies to the hepatitis C virus were not found in your test sample and it is extremely unlikely that you have been infected with the hepatitis C virus.

An insufficient blood result refers specifically to the Home Access® Hepatitis C Check Test system. It means that the Hepatitis C test could not be performed on the blood sample that was sent to the laboratory. This happens most often because there was not enough blood to test, there were white spots in the circle, or the blood did not soak through all the way to the back.

The Western blot test is used as a confirmatory test in the US and some other countries. This test can separately detect antibodies to various HIV proteins. If several types of antibodies are detected then the result is positive; if no antibodies are detected then the result is negative. If the test appears to show only one or two types of antibodies then the result is called indeterminate, or inconclusive. There are two main reasons why this can happen.

The most commonly used syphilis tests screen for an antibody to the syphilis organism. Lupus patients sometimes have a very similar antibody. This similar antibody, the antiphospholipid antibody (aPL), can cause an incorrect positive result on a syphilis test. If the doctor suspects that the patient may not really have syphilis, he may choose to then run a different, more complicated and expensive test that checks specifically for the syphilis organism.

NO! OptiGen test results are meant to be used in a responsible breeding program. This does not mean that carrier or affected dogs should never be bred. It does mean that carrier and affected dogs with other desirable traits can be bred, but only to a certified, genetically “Normal/Clear" dog in order to prevent the genetic disease. We can't make specific recommendations about how people should handle their dogs.

Nonreactive indicates that the serum tested does not have detectable antibodies to HIV-1. There are several reasons for this: Person is in the window period immediately after infection when antibodies are not yet being produced. Person is in the final disease stages when the immune system is no longer capable of producing detectable antibody.

Inconclusive TP-PA - If Reactive results are seen with both sensitized and unsensitized particles, nonspecific agglutination is indicated. The serum may or may not be reactive for T. palladium. In the TDSHS laboratory, specimens that show (> ?) reactivity with the unsensitized particles are reported as Inconclusive due to nonspecific agglutination and are then tested by the FTA-ABS.

Equivocal TP-PA - Specimens that show low reactivity, defined as either ( 1+) or (?) reactivity with the sensitized particles and (-) reactivity with the unsensitized particles, are repeated on the TP-PA. If the results of the repeat are the same, it is reported as Equivocal and are then tested by the FTA-ABS.

If a woman's maternal serum screening result is abnormal, it DOES NOT necessarily mean that the baby HAS a birth defect, but rather that the risk is higher than average. The results can vary from a slightly increased risk to a more significant one. The laboratory report states a woman's specific risk, and also shows it pictured on a graph. False positive screening results happen in less than 10% of women under 35 years of age (20-25% of women age 35 or older).

The positive result indicates that HIV-1 antibodies were detected by the laboratory analysis in the individual's blood sample that was submitted. The infected individual is capable of passing the virus to someone else. The individual must immediately seek a physician for medical advice and treatment.