Hello! I Need Advice Re: The Interpretation Of Medical Test

Posted on Thu, 23 Jan 2020

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Thu, 23 Jan 2020 Answered on

Last reviewed on

Question : Hello! I need advice re: the interpretation of medical test results. Specifically, I got a 10-test STI panel done and everything came back negative, but I did have a false-positive for the Syphilis RPR test (that was then verified as a false-positive when a further Treponema pallidum Antibodies test came back negative). That being said, the lab told me i did not need to do a retest or anything else after the fact (I thought I might need to just to be sure), and I wanted a second opinion on that question - as well as to know if should then get tested for what else might have caused the RPR false-positive (I feel in fine health, so I am guessing it's not malaria, a common cause of RPR false-positives). Please let me know and thanks!

Answered by Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis (37 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
false positive indeed

Detailed Answer:
Hello,

having a negative treponemal and a positive non-treponemal test is considered a false-positive test. Repeat testing is not required.

There are many situations where a false positive RPR may occur. These include many viral or bacterial infections (including mycobacterial infections and malaria...), advanced age, malignancy, autoimmune disorders (like the antiphospholipid syndrome, etc), pregnancy, etc.

When it's not evident, it's not easy to say what caused it.

I hope I've answered your questions. Please let me know if you need further assistance.

Kind Regards,
Dr Panagiotis Zografakis
Internal Medicine Specialist

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar