Welcome to the Forum.  Dr. Handsfield and I share the forum and by chance I will be answering your question.  We have worked together for nearly 40 years and the content of our replies are always the same despite the differences in our verbal style.

You don't provide much detail about the nature of your exposure but most single exposures are relatively low risk for HIV.  In all instances, even in the unlikely circumstance that your partner had HIV there is a greater than 99% chance that you were not infected.  With that as background I'll answer your specific questions:

Your extensive reply exceeds the recommended word limit for the Forum. Replies will be brief.  In reading your follow-up it appears that you have a misunderstanding about PEP and how it works.  PEP is recommended for HIV prevention following a high risk exposure and its activity is intended to be relevant for a single exposure/event.  It may reduce for risk for infection due to exposures which occur while taking PEP but that is not the reason it is intended to be used.  For persons who have continuing risks for HIV it is better tot o take daily preventative therapy _PrEP) rather than PEP following each high risk event

1.  Sorry this was not clear.  By the time 2 days (48 hours) had passed since your last dose of PEP, there would be no more protection from HIV infection due to the medication.

2. This statement if correct.  The reason that we worry that future antibody production would be delayed is not because of the effected of PEP drugs on new exposures but because any virus which might have been present while taking PEP (from the original exposure) would be slow growing and therefore lead to a delayed antibody response.

3.  This report has nothing to do with failures of PEP.  It indicates that persons who take PEP in this study had continuing risk for acquisition of HIV (and therefore might be better served by taking PrEP rather than PEP)

4. Your tests are conclusive.  Each time you take PEP you are taking medication related to efforts to prevent infection following a single exposure.  Taking PEP more than once does NOT reduce its effectiveness.  HOWEVER, if you feel you need PEP repeatedly I would suggest you talk with your doctor about taking PrEP on a daily basis rather than taking PEP repeatedly.  this is a personal decision but you should discuss your risks and need for preventative therapy with your own doctor or a local HIV specialist.

5.  PEP will not effect HIV tests.  Your result is conclusive.

6. Following and exposure and the decision to take PEP, testing for HIV should be taken using a combination HIV antigen/antibody ("duo") test 12 weeks after beginning PEP (8 weeks after finishing PEP)

I hope this is helpful.  EWH

This will be my final reply.  Your questions have become somewhat repetitive and as I suggested earlier, it appears you have a misunderstanding of why PEP is good for some persons, why PrEP is good for others and why many persons really do not need either.  Explaining this is beyond the scope of this forum.  I suggest you read about it on the internet and then speak with your own health care provider to help you guide your own decision making. .Again, these final replies will be brief

1.You are once again missing the point.  The statements are NOT contradictory. You are once again, confusing the effect of PEP in preventing infection following an encounter which puts you at risk with the probability that while taking PEP, subsequent risky encounters might lead to infection.  PEP is designed to prevent infection AFTER exposure.   Suppression of viral growth from an infection occurring at the time of the encounter due to PEP could theoretically delay development of antibodies.  Rather than provide incorrect information, recommendations for HIV testing after PEP are conservative and for that reason, recommendations are that follow-up testing for infection following completion of PEP are that test results are NOT conclusive until 8 weeks following completion of pep (12 weeks after the exposure).  Statements that PEP could delay antibody production for 6 months or a year are incorrect and sound to me like the sort of misinformation that is found on the internet.

2.  Also repetitive.  You have tested more than 8 weeks following completion of PEP.  Results of tests taken more than 8 weeks following completion of PEPare conclusive.    Both your combo results at 28 moths following completion of PEP and your RNA results at 24 months prOVE that you are not infected by the exposures which led you to take PEP.  Believe your results.  You do not have HIV.

3.  Repetitive.  Your HCV test results are conclusive

This completes this thread.  I trust you will not return to the Forum with further repetitive questions.  If you do , your questions may be deleted without a response and without return of your posting fee.  EWH