[Question #8700] Follow up to Question #8678

40 months ago

Hello again,

I apologize but I had one more follow up question. When I was reading other posts when I had my previous questions a few days ago, I accidentally stumbled upon some posts asking about biotin. I only read parts of them because I have found that more information is unhealthy for me. So, I just wanted to ask a quick clarifying question about it to minimize my information intake.

I have never taken any biotin supplements or multivitamin with biotin in it. I hadn't even had any type of vitamin at all within a month before the HIV test. Is it correct that I do not need to worry about biotin affecting my HIV test given I do not take biotin?

Thanks again

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

40 months ago

My closing comment in our previous discussion: "No medical conditions, medications, or drugs...have any known effect on reliability of the standard tests for HIV or other STIs." That truly means none, zero, zilch, nada. Got it?

And that includes biotin, which has no effect in the doses in supplements or otherwise taken routinely by those who use it. And your past vitamin use of course has no effect. But I guess I don't really understand your question: How could biotin (or anything else) that you do not take have any effect?? Of course not.

HHH, MD

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40 months ago

I understand thank you for clarifying.

My question was more aimed at if natural biotin in the diet would have any chance of affecting the test?

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

40 months ago

No, of course not. Why would you even suspect it? If you were developing a test for HIV (or anything else), would you design it so any normal diet would have any effect? ---
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40 months ago

Thank you for your responses Dr. Handsfield, I really appreciate all of them. I also apologize for the confusing and dumb questions, I have had severe OCD/anxiety over this. It has been 6 weeks since I had these tests performed and have spent most days still somehow worrying about them. Your responses have definitely helped.

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

40 months ago

Thanks for filling me in -- I'm not surprised to hear you have OCD, based on the questions asked. You may benefit from counseling, if not already doing that. In any case, you can rely on my replies in your previous thread and can be completely certain you do not have HIV or other STI.

Thanks for the thanks; I'm glad to have helped.

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