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HIV and risk
Hello, I am a 23 female student and approximately 2 weeks ago I was raped by a mid 20s, non-injected drug user, hetero male. The sex was unprotected and he ejaculated in me. A couple days after the incident I developed a yeast infection. But, I went to the the ER to get a kit done where they gave me a ton of antibiotics to prevent STDs which I think may have possibly caused it? I took 8 antibiotic pills plus an antibiotic shot in the buttocks. Now approximately 2 weeks I'm starting to feel a sore throat that comes and goes, I developed a small rash on my back yesterday but that only lasted for 5 minutes, and today I'm feeling nauseous and have a minor headache. I'm terrified that by tomorrow I will have full blown ARS. I have an appointment with my doctor for the 4 week mark but my anxiety has really taken it's toll and I don't know if I can make it that long. I'm going to my doctors today to get anxiety meds, but I know the 2 week mark is still too soon to be tested. At the hospital they offered me PEP, but I declined it since I'm a student I didn't want to be sick for the last weeks of the semester. Did I make a stupid mistake not taking it? Do I now have HIV?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I'm very happy for you -- not surprised, but happy. Congratulations!
I got my 4 week results back today, and they too came back negative! The doctor said my 4 week results are good, and he also said I don't need to have anymore testing.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
These results are encouraging, but not definitive. Four weeks will be better, but even that will be definitive only if it's a duo test (for both HIV antibody and p24 antigen). If you haven't done so, please read the thread I linked in my original reply.
The bottom line remains that you almost certainly do not have HIV. But you'll need the additional tests to be certain.
The bottom line remains that you almost certainly do not have HIV. But you'll need the additional tests to be certain.
I got my two week results from yesterday back today (surprisingly quick!). The results say Nonreactive for HIV 1 and 2 antibodies which my doctor says means negative. As you stated previously, I should be confident with these results, correct?
I still have my appointment for 4 weeks, if I test negative should I be safe to stop testing? Or should I do more follow-up tests?
I still have my appointment for 4 weeks, if I test negative should I be safe to stop testing? Or should I do more follow-up tests?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Available lab tests don't depend on the doctor, but on the laboratory. It is very likely that the lab his office uses provides all the standard HIV tests; but if not, that lab will know how to refer it to a lab that does so.
I agree your partner sounds even lower risk than before. My guess is that in recent years almost nobody in the US has acquired HIV under these circumstances. Feel free to return with a follow-up comment to tell me the test result(s).
I agree your partner sounds even lower risk than before. My guess is that in recent years almost nobody in the US has acquired HIV under these circumstances. Feel free to return with a follow-up comment to tell me the test result(s).
Thank you for the information, it has definitely been an overwhelming past couple of weeks. When I go to the doctor today I will see if they can test me. Are most doctors capable of testing for DNA/RNA? Normally once a year, I have gotten the antibody test with regular check-ups.
I should note I do know the assailant, and none of the potential risk factors you listed above apply to him, he's Caucasian. My rational side tells me it's very unlikely he has it to begin with I've probably googled countless statistics in my favor, but my anxiety gets the best of me. I'm one of those people that thinks I will be the outlier.
Thank you again, Dr. Handsfield
I should note I do know the assailant, and none of the potential risk factors you listed above apply to him, he's Caucasian. My rational side tells me it's very unlikely he has it to begin with I've probably googled countless statistics in my favor, but my anxiety gets the best of me. I'm one of those people that thinks I will be the outlier.
Thank you again, Dr. Handsfield
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome to the forum. Thanks for your question.
You have been through a horrible experience; I'm sorry for it.
However, I'm not too worried about HIV. It is statistically unlikely you were infected. It sounds like you might know the assailant, or perhaps he is in custody. If so, has he been HIV tested?
Even if his HIV status is unknown, the chance of HIV is very low in any particular male without special risks -- sex with other men, injection drug use, etc. The chance yould be higher if he is African American or has been imprisoned, or if he is an immigrant from an AIDS endemic area like tropical Africa.
Finally, even with these risks, or if he has HIV, the odds are strongly in your favor. The average risk of HIV transmisison from unprotected vaginal sex, if the male has HIV, is around 1 in 1,000. That's high enough to be of concern, but still a pretty low chance. For all those reasons, your decision not to take PEP was very reasonable.
The STD treatments you had certianly could trigger a vaginal yeast infection -- but most likely that's the only medical issue of concern (or maybe you have a minor garden variety respiratory infection causing the sore throat). ARS typically causes a more severe sore throat and fever, and the skin rash of ARS doesn't come and go as your had done.
You don't need to wait 4 weeks for HIV testing. By 2 weeks after exposure, an HIV DNA/RNA test and/or an antibody test often is positive -- so negative results would be very reassuring. You'll still need later testing, but you should speak with your doctor about it. I'm confident that you don't have HIV and your tests will be negative. (Below is a link to a thread that goes into detail about HIV test reliability at various times after exposure; and it contains another link as well.)
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/1891685
Finally, as implied above, if your assailant has been tested and is known to be HIV negative, you can stop worrying entirely. It would be statistically very unlikely that he was in a window period, i.e. caught HIV so recently that his test wasn't yet positive.
I hope this has helped. Best wishes-- HHH, MD
You have been through a horrible experience; I'm sorry for it.
However, I'm not too worried about HIV. It is statistically unlikely you were infected. It sounds like you might know the assailant, or perhaps he is in custody. If so, has he been HIV tested?
Even if his HIV status is unknown, the chance of HIV is very low in any particular male without special risks -- sex with other men, injection drug use, etc. The chance yould be higher if he is African American or has been imprisoned, or if he is an immigrant from an AIDS endemic area like tropical Africa.
Finally, even with these risks, or if he has HIV, the odds are strongly in your favor. The average risk of HIV transmisison from unprotected vaginal sex, if the male has HIV, is around 1 in 1,000. That's high enough to be of concern, but still a pretty low chance. For all those reasons, your decision not to take PEP was very reasonable.
The STD treatments you had certianly could trigger a vaginal yeast infection -- but most likely that's the only medical issue of concern (or maybe you have a minor garden variety respiratory infection causing the sore throat). ARS typically causes a more severe sore throat and fever, and the skin rash of ARS doesn't come and go as your had done.
You don't need to wait 4 weeks for HIV testing. By 2 weeks after exposure, an HIV DNA/RNA test and/or an antibody test often is positive -- so negative results would be very reassuring. You'll still need later testing, but you should speak with your doctor about it. I'm confident that you don't have HIV and your tests will be negative. (Below is a link to a thread that goes into detail about HIV test reliability at various times after exposure; and it contains another link as well.)
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/1891685
Finally, as implied above, if your assailant has been tested and is known to be HIV negative, you can stop worrying entirely. It would be statistically very unlikely that he was in a window period, i.e. caught HIV so recently that his test wasn't yet positive.
I hope this has helped. Best wishes-- HHH, MD
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