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HIV Status

hello doctor i recently asked you a question about an unprotected sex encounter i had in january  i was really nervous about it and i test negative to 6 months which i was greatly relieved. One thing Idid not tell you in my question is i had a Mutual Masturbation encounter with another male  in june. it was very brief and no ejaculation happened by my partner but i did ejaculate. I know everyone say this activity is no risk but my scare is is that maybe some of the pre ejaculate fluid got into my urethra or a sore i had on my scrotum at the time. i wouldnt be worried but last week i hada small irritation in my left armpit and i think theres a lymph node swollen there when i feel it sometimes i dont feel anything and other time it feels as though there a bump underneath the skin the area has been pretty red this is the only thing i worried about and there is no other swelling on my body that i know of.  I took a test approx. 7-8 weeks after the mutual masturbation encounter. My question is how accurate would the 7 week test be in any case and should i be worried and get another test?  Is the 7 week test after my mutual masturbation encounter enough to confirm my hiv negative status or should i test to three months?
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300980 tn?1194929400
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Detection of swollen glands is a medical "art form".  Clinicians train hard to detect subtle abnormalities and to try to detect them in yourself is fraught with error, both because you might miss them and, if they are present, interpretation of why they are present is difficult.  This is because "glands" are lymph nodes which can swell due to any of a large number of infections both viral and bacterial, as well as due to allergic reactions, due to autoimmune disorders and other problems.  For this reason we encourage clients who are concerned about swollen glands to check with their own health care providers rather than try to diagnose themselves and, if swollen lymph nodes are present, not to worry about them in relationship to HIV because they are such a non-specific problem.  When a person has swollen lymph nodes, the chance that they are due to HIV can be measured as a fraction of 1%.

This thread is now over.  EWH
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just for curiosities sake how would you tell if your lymph nodes were swollen? Would it be very Noticeable or not?
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thank you for your information
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300980 tn?1194929400
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Correct.  EWH
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thank you for the information. So i shouldnt worry about the Irritation under my arm being related to HIV
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300980 tn?1194929400
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I have read many of the nearly 30 posts explaining your concerns about HIV which you have posted over that past several months and see that your remain excessively concerned about risk for HIV.  You do not know that your partner had HIV and, in fact, it is unlikely that he did.  Even if he did, there is no risk of HIV form mutual masturbation, despite the fact that it is quite typical for persons engaged in mutual masturbation to get one anothers' genital secretions on each other. the activity (mutual masturbation) is very common yet on one has ever been described to get HIV from this activity- never.  You are not going to be the first.

Your test at 7-8 weeks proves that you did not get HIV.  At 6 weeks over 95% of persons with HIV can be detected by the tests and at 7 weeks the figure is even higher.  There is no reason for further testing.  If you cannot get over the concerns you have been expressing for the past several months, I would suggest you discuss this with a counselor to help get by this.  

I hope my comments are helpful to you. EWH
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