I recently had an oral HIV testing done and the nurse only had me have the thing in my mouth for 5-6 seconds but i just read from a site that its supposed to be in your mouth for 2-5 minutes. Are there different kinds of tests or did i just get jipped out of $45 and piece of mind.

Well .......
If you took the ( ORASURE ) you have to take the swab and rub it between you're lower cheek and gum for about 30-45 seconds and then hold it in place for about 90 - 120 seconds .
The swab has salt on it to sweat out the antibodies from tiny pores in you're cheek and are then absorbed into the swab .
That's why we chew our food in our cheeks and not in the middle of our mouths so the food can be flooded with antibodies and other things .
If you feel you've been ripped off I would definately complane and tell them you want a retest .
If you're in the USA then you could go to a state run AIDS COUNCEL and get tested for FREE .
In good health .......
.......... Lost Spirit ...........

The thought of someone doing HIV tests wrong really scares the begeebees out of me. Are you sure that it just didn't seem like it was only 5-6 seconds. Could you have just misjudge the time???


I have been tested several times with the ORASURE swab test. Each time the nurse or doctor doing the test has used a clock or watch with a second hand to mark the time they run the swab back and forth in between my cheek and gums and then again when they have me hold it in place in the far back corner of my mouth as they watch the time.

Lost Spirit, I never knew it was actual salt on the swab, guess you learn something new everyday. Can the test still be accurate when its not done for the correct amount of time.

If the test was done wrong it will come back as either ( INCONCLUSIVE ) ( UNACCEPTABLE ) OR ( UNREADABLE ) because there would not be enough antibodies in the swab to test .