Could having a flu or cold when your blood is drawn cause a false positive on a hepatitis a igm test? igg was negative.

Probably not related: The positive HEP A igm indicated that you HAD HEPATITIS A remotely...(usually as a CHILD since JAUNDICE does not occur with HEP A in childhood.) Hope this helps! Dr Z

False positive: This is very unlikely. If you have antibodies to Hep A they are likely to be very specific for that virus.

Very possibly: As you know, the hepatitis A IgM antibody tests for recent infection. False positives may result due to the presence of cross-reactive antibodies from other viral infection or underlying illnesses. Depending on the circumstances and time of exposure, retesting should be considered. Best wishes:)