i just had the gyno run full tests today and i had a question about herpes testing. i always thought if you didn't have symptoms..to test it they would just take your blood. well this doctor believes in taking a swab..is that more accurate than blood testing then?

anyone know?

i just had the gyno run full tests today and i had a question about herpes testing. i always thought if you didn't have symptoms..to test it they would just take your blood. well this doctor believes in taking a swab..is that more accurate than blood testing then?

I read the blood test is more accurate. Plus what if you get a "false positive" and go on thinking you dont have it and later on unknowingly infect someone?Its better to play it safe and request the blood test or find someplace where they do do it

Actually I heard the opposite. If the doctor can obtain a good sample (sufficient fluid) from the sore or blister then the swab test is more accurate. The reason is that they are testing the exact spot of the potential outbreak.

The blood test is accurate for detecting it in your blood stream but if you've never had an outbreak anywhere on your body then it could be that you were exposed sometime in your life but it's not active at all.

If you have a high antibody count that means you most likely have it. If you're borderlined positive which means just over the positive antibody count of 1.0, then you might not have herpes. It could be a false-positive. A high count is around 2.0.

If I were you, I'd get both tests done just to be sure since you have symptoms.

actually i said i have NO symptoms.

i just wanted to run full tests on everything and was confused on how my gyno wanted to test for herps.

i thought if you have shown NO symptoms, a blood test was more accurate.

That's right. If there is nothing to swab, take a blood test. There is a time you must wait after potential exposure for the antibodies to develop...I'm not sure what it is.

Sorry nixie. Yes, then get a blood test just like Backpacker said.

Keep an eye out for the blood count as I said before. If it's high then you most likely have it. If it's low, then you might not have it really. In such case, you should retest within 2-3 months after the first test to see if your antibody count increases.

This advice is all that my doctor suggested to me.

Good Luck.