Hepatitis B Testing

Tell me about the Hepatitis B test. Will I have to get swabbed?

No, the test for Hepatitis B is a blood test, so you will not need to get undressed or swabbed. The Hepatitis B Surface Antigen with Confirmation by Neutralization test is a blood test that screens for early signs of the infection. It looks for a protein on the surface of the virus and can be detected during the acute or chronic phase of the infection. Our bodies make antibodies to this antigen as a way to fight off infection. "Confirmation by neutralization" means that if you have a positive or borderline positive result, the lab will immediately run another test on the blood sample to confirm the finding.

What does the test result mean?

This test screens for the earliest indicator of acute Hepatitis B infection. It's also the primary way of identifying those with chronic infections. A positive result indicates an early infection. A negative result indicates that there is no active or prior infection. Other tests can detect if you need a vaccination or if you've recovered from an infection.