HI Rabbit_J, The correct time for reading your result should not be before 15 minutes and not after 1 hour. You may begin to see the test running at the start of beginning your test or it may take up to 15 minutes to see a change, that's why we say not to read before the 15 minutes. Every test varies and due to certain factors, some may take a little less or longer to start running but this has absolutely no effect on the test or result itself. As long as you received a control line, your test has worked perfectly fine and you have carried everything out properly. The symptoms you have described are likely to be totally unrelated to HIV as your negative result is conclusive, I would recommend getting these checked out if they persist though (as something totally unrelated to HIV). Hope this information helps, if you have any other questions please feel free to leave them below. Have a great day Becky

I have taken another biosure test at 14 since exposure. I’m 99% happy that the negative result is accurate and that I can stop worrying now, however should I be worried that it took a while for the test to get going? The you tube video did say it should be working after 3 minutes but took about 10 to get going. I have only one line at the top showing. Can I take this as a conclusive result now? I’m still having symptoms such as constant headaches and joint pain but I believe this could be something else now

Hi Rabbit_j, You can never really know for sure so it is always better to practice safe sex with partners who are of an unknown status. It was good of you to take that initiative and use protection as you said. The chesty cough may simply be related to having a cold, since it is the winter season, but if it persists you could go to your local GP to get it checked out. Anxiety can be the devil. Try to relax and put this behind you until the 12 week period is up and then retest again. Kindest regards, Becky, BioSURE UK LTD

I spoke to the person I was with and he said he is always safe but how can you know for sure? I’m really worried that’s all and I’m continually checking for symptoms and have now got a chesty cough but then again quite a few people have at the minute. Keep thinking I have a rash when I don’t and googling symptoms. Thank you for your response though.

Hi Rabbit_j, Do you know the status of the person you were sexually active with? From your description of your exposure I would say that HIV transmission is very unlikely to have occurred, even if that person was HIV positive. The symptoms you have described could be related to HIV but also are likely to be a result of anxiety. The fact that you have tested at around 7 weeks and received a negative result is a good indication of a negative HIV status, however if you are using a second generation test, like the BioSure self-test, then any result before 12 weeks is not conclusive and I would always recommend to retest after the 12 week window period for a conclusive result. I would recommend to not Google your symptoms anymore - Google is not always the best for self diagnosis! If you are too anxious to wait another 5 weeks to test again, you can visit a GUM clinic to get your result sooner. I hope this information helps, if you have any other questions please feel free to leave them in the thread below and I will be happy to answer them. Kindest regards, Becky, BioSURE UK LTD