Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date. I am not sure what doctor will answer this question, but all of you are so thoughtful by donating your time here so I first want to thank you.
My son came to us and told us about his sexual orientation and his possible exposure to HIV. He also showed us his test results. It seems he had several tests run over the course of 13 weeks. They are as follows: 2 week neg. antibody, 3 week negitive pcr dna, 5 week neg.pcr dna, 7 week negitive pcr dna, 10 week neg pcr dna and 10 week neg antibody, and finally a negitive antibody at 13 weeks.
My husband and I are are teachers, and not MDs so we only know what are son told us about these tests. He states that the private testing service says that his tests are conclusive and that HIV is no longer an issue. My question is, are these tests that he has taken valid tests for HIV and if so can we as a family put this to rest? Again, we want the best for our children, and that includes treatment if need be. At this point we dont know what to do, but if these tests have ruled out HIV, we can at least begin to help our son with his orientation.
Any insight to this would be helpful and thank so much for your work here in this forum.
Lisa Capaldini, M.D.
Internal Medicine
Good news: your son, IS HIV-negative, that is, HIV-uninfected-his multiple tests done over several weeks confirm that. Now his job is to stay negative: that means "safe sex". It's very important that your son learn how to protect himself from HIV exposure-good sources of information are Project Inform, which has a web site www.projectinform.org and a newsletter. It's great your son has a supportive family-it looks like another challenge for all of you is how to best "deal"with his being gay. As a doctor, I often work with families who are both surprised and concerned that one of their kids (or parents, or siblings) is gay. In many cases, the first instinct is to hope to "fix" or change that person's orientation "back" to straight. Multiple studies and practical experience have shown us that a person can't change their orientation any more than they can change their skin color or their height. While people CAN choose IF they are sexually active, most experts believe that it's much healthier to be sexually active in a safe, consensual, open way, then to try to fit a sexual role that doesn't fit. The bottom line, is that your son needs your love and support in being who he is. It sounds like this is new for your family: there is an organization called PFLAG you can contact for more information -- this is an organization of families of gay kids.
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