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4 weeks from exposure
Dear Doctors. 4 weeks ago on saturday almost 28 days ago I had a unprotected vaginal and oral intercourse withfemaleAfter 3-4 days I had diarrhea for 1-2 days. A day later my right gland in groin strated aching a bit but it was not swollen.2 days before exposure I had an inury in the gym and had a pretty nasty cut on my shin. The day after exposure I severly sprained my right ankle All week after exposure I was feeling pretty weak. I partied 3 days in a row in a weekend where I was exposed so I thought this might have been the cause .The following week I was feeling pretty well. During this week I noticed very small 4-5 pimple like spots on the head and shaft of my penis.Around my testicles I had a rash for couple days which disappeared completely.I also noticed skin rash on my back arms and legs which looked a little bit like mosquito bites. The rash is on my body till this day but in different places. Last week I also had big fever for one day was vommitng and had diarrhea but this was probably stomach flu as many people in my area and work have been suffering from this.Since then I have been feeling fine no swollen glands no sore throat no headaches. Still have the rash on body and on my penis.I am pretty alergic person and had dermatologic problems all my life. My questions are:
1. Could my symtpoms be HIV symptoms?
2. Could any other STD cause these symptoms?
3.I have been browsing through internet and many sites say that when person is infected you will get infected 1000% from one exposure and here it says that it is small posibility. Which one is true then cause I am getting confused.
4. If a person gets infected and have sex with another female 10 hours after exposure what is the chance of infecting this person?
5. I noticed i am having more and more spider veins on my body especially my belly and below my chest. I had them before but could this be connected to any infection?
Thanks!
1. Could my symtpoms be HIV symptoms?
2. Could any other STD cause these symptoms?
3.I have been browsing through internet and many sites say that when person is infected you will get infected 1000% from one exposure and here it says that it is small posibility. Which one is true then cause I am getting confused.
4. If a person gets infected and have sex with another female 10 hours after exposure what is the chance of infecting this person?
5. I noticed i am having more and more spider veins on my body especially my belly and below my chest. I had them before but could this be connected to any infection?
Thanks!
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Of course you are the only one surprised by the result, but congratulations. Happy to have helped.
I got results today. All were negative thank God.Guess that anxious mind does not want to listen to reason. Anyway thank you very much for your help Doctor. Take Care!!
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
" feel free to return with a comment to tell me your HIV test results -- but not until then; I will delete any other follow-up comments."
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Sure, HIV infections often are entirely asymptomatic ("dormant"). But the blood tests always are positive within 10 days to 6 weeks, depending on the specific tests done.
I suggest you do your best to accept the scientific evidence and the reasoned reassurance you have had, don't second guess it, and stop searching the internet. Anxious persons who keep searching for more information tend to be drawn to comments that reinforce their anxieties.
I hope you are planning to see a doctor or clinic in person, and not get tested through a lab or online service. You need the evaluation and direct advice of a wise clinician. But either way, feel free to return with a comment to tell me your HIV test results -- but not until then; I will delete any other follow-up comments.
I suggest you do your best to accept the scientific evidence and the reasoned reassurance you have had, don't second guess it, and stop searching the internet. Anxious persons who keep searching for more information tend to be drawn to comments that reinforce their anxieties.
I hope you are planning to see a doctor or clinic in person, and not get tested through a lab or online service. You need the evaluation and direct advice of a wise clinician. But either way, feel free to return with a comment to tell me your HIV test results -- but not until then; I will delete any other follow-up comments.
Thank u Doctor I am having my tests this week so I will know for sure. But is it possible that the infection is dormant and there are no symptoms of HIV or any other STD because I read over the internet that this is the case in many infections.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Red spots of the head off the penis, usually due to nonspecific inflammation or sometimes to yeast infection, are very common especially in uncircumcised men. It' not an STD. Your GP is mistaken about oral sex and risk of HIV, or you misunderstood him. As implied above, you can always visit a GUM clinic for world-class STD/HIV care and advice, or Freedom Health if you prefer and can afford private care.
Thank you very much for the answer Doctor. It really eased my mind and lifted me up a bit. Just one more question what could the red spots on my penis mean cause they appeared after the exposure and the pain in my gland my GP said that it occurs when there's infection but he also said that it is very easy to catch HIV through oral sex so I am not sure about him. Anyway I will post next with my results. Thank you Doctor
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome to the forum.
Your profile indicates you're in London. If that's where the sexual exposure occurred, and if your partner was not an immigrant from an HIV-endemic area like southern Africa, then almost certainly she wasn't infected. Even among British commercial sex workers, well under 1% (probably under 1 in 1,000) are infected. To your questions:
1) Your symptoms do not suggest HIV. Acute HIV symptoms generally do not include diarrhea, certainly not as the main symptom. And 4 days is too soon for onset of symptoms; generally it's 10-14 days after exposure. Your other symptoms also are not suggestive of HIV. The 3 most common symptoms are fever (38C/101F or higher), sore throat, and body wide non-itchy (and not pimple-like) skin rash; 70% of patients have all three of these.
2) None of these symptoms suggests any other STD either.
3) No responsible expert or website says HIV is 100% transmissible. The average risk for heterosexual vaginal intercourse, without a condom, if the woman has HIV, is one transmission for every 2,000 exposures. That's why many, many spouses of HIV infected people never catch the virus (which perhaps you didn't know).
4) It takes at least at least a few days after catching HIV to be able to transmit it to another person. 10 hours is impossible.
5) Skin changes like this do not suggest HIV. My guess is your anxiety about all this is making you notice various aspects of your skin or other body sensations that are not actually abnormal.
But of course the way to settle all this is to have an HIV test. Many (most?) NHS GUM clinics, and private HIV/STD clinics (e.g., Freedom Health, in London) routinely do the combo test for both HIV antibody and p24 antigen. This test is 100% reliable when done 4 weeks or more after exposure. Based on the exposures described and your symptoms, you definitely can expect a negative result. You also should have standard STD tests (gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis). They probably will also be negative, but better safe than sorry!
Feel free to let me know your test results. But don't lose a lot of sleep while you wait. You can expect them to be negative.
Regards-- HHH, MD
Your profile indicates you're in London. If that's where the sexual exposure occurred, and if your partner was not an immigrant from an HIV-endemic area like southern Africa, then almost certainly she wasn't infected. Even among British commercial sex workers, well under 1% (probably under 1 in 1,000) are infected. To your questions:
1) Your symptoms do not suggest HIV. Acute HIV symptoms generally do not include diarrhea, certainly not as the main symptom. And 4 days is too soon for onset of symptoms; generally it's 10-14 days after exposure. Your other symptoms also are not suggestive of HIV. The 3 most common symptoms are fever (38C/101F or higher), sore throat, and body wide non-itchy (and not pimple-like) skin rash; 70% of patients have all three of these.
2) None of these symptoms suggests any other STD either.
3) No responsible expert or website says HIV is 100% transmissible. The average risk for heterosexual vaginal intercourse, without a condom, if the woman has HIV, is one transmission for every 2,000 exposures. That's why many, many spouses of HIV infected people never catch the virus (which perhaps you didn't know).
4) It takes at least at least a few days after catching HIV to be able to transmit it to another person. 10 hours is impossible.
5) Skin changes like this do not suggest HIV. My guess is your anxiety about all this is making you notice various aspects of your skin or other body sensations that are not actually abnormal.
But of course the way to settle all this is to have an HIV test. Many (most?) NHS GUM clinics, and private HIV/STD clinics (e.g., Freedom Health, in London) routinely do the combo test for both HIV antibody and p24 antigen. This test is 100% reliable when done 4 weeks or more after exposure. Based on the exposures described and your symptoms, you definitely can expect a negative result. You also should have standard STD tests (gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis). They probably will also be negative, but better safe than sorry!
Feel free to let me know your test results. But don't lose a lot of sleep while you wait. You can expect them to be negative.
Regards-- HHH, MD
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