How to Read a Hep C Lab Report

Hepatitis C is a viral disease of the liver that results from contact with blood infected with Hep C virus (HCV). HCV is mainly transmitted through contaminated injection devices such as needles, and less frequently through birth or sexual encounter. Symptoms such as fever, abdominal pain and jaundice might show in 20 percent to 30 percent of infected people, according to the Centers for Disease Control, but most people who have been infected show no symptoms. A blood test that looks for a developed antibody to the Hep C virus or the presence of the virus RNA determines hepatitis C exposure or infection.

Instructions

• 1

  Determine whether the report you are trying to decipher is for HCV antibody or RNA. Look for these three terms: "anti-HCV', "HCV-RIBA" or "HCV-RNA". If this is your first Hep C test, chances are it is for anti- HCV.

• 2

  Look for the term "negative" or "positive" next to the test name. If the test is for anti-HCV and it reads negative, you have not been exposed to the virus and therefore your body hasn't developed an antibody against it. If the anti-HCV test reads positive, additional testing is needed to obtain a diagnosis.

• 3

  Search the lab report for the term RIBA (recombinant immunoblot assay) HCV antibody. Look for results such as "negative," "positive" or "intermediate." A negative RIBA Hep C virus antibody indicates no virus exposure or infection. A positive result indicates that you were exposed to the virus; you might or might not have an infection now. An intermediate RIBA result means that the test value is between the negative and positive ranges, and a repeat test is required.

• 4

  Scan the lab report for words such as "negative," "undetected," "positive" or "detected" next to the Hep C virus RNA test. A negative or undetected HCV RNA indicates no current infection, but it doesn't rule out exposure. A positive or detected HCV RNA proves current Hep C virus infection.