Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

Screening:

Collect minimum 2.5 mL serum or plasma or 5 mL whole blood in EDTA or heparin tube. Store at room temperature no more than 3 days (15-25°C), or 7 days refrigerated at 2 ° - 8°C. 

Specimens must be received at the laboratory and tested within 7 days of collection.

Confirmation:

IF SUBMITTING FOR CONFIRMATION TESTING: ORIGINAL SPECIMEN TUBE MUST BE SENT TO RISHL

If specimen is not received in original tube the following comment will be added to the report "Specimen received was not in its original tube as is required for HIV Confirmatory testing".

Specimen stability is affected by elevated temperature. Whole Blood, plasma or serum may be stored for up to 72 hours from time of draw at <= 25°C; temperatures not to exceed 30°C are acceptable for no more than 24 hours. Specimens may be stored for up to 5 days at 2 ° - 8°C following centrifugation. Plasma separated from the cells may be stored for longer periods of time at <= -20°C before testing.

Patients Receiving Long-acting PrEP:

Submitters should include a request for an HIV RNA test if patients are on injectable pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention in people who have not been diagnosed with HIV, per current recommendations.

CLIA regulations require two patient identifiers on the specimen container and the test requisition (e.g., patient first & last name, DOB, unique patient identifier such as medical record number)