Aa
Epstein Barr or Cytomagalo virus
Hi,
I was told by my physician that I was not HIV infected after recent HIV testing. But, I do have debilitating muscle aches and burning foot and palms. I also have on and off pharingitis and mild fever and extreme fatigue. The only risky exposure now I assume I did was deep kiss a message parlour girl. So the doctor now thinks I could have contacted cytomegalo or Epstein-Barr viruses. Did anybody have any such episode. I am still awaiting on the results. Also I had taken in mid November I had taken a flu shot and since then I have had muscle aches and twitching all over. Has anyone gone through similar phase? I am TOTALLY in pain and at loss why this is all happening to me. Has anyone recovered fully from these viruses?
Andrew
I was told by my physician that I was not HIV infected after recent HIV testing. But, I do have debilitating muscle aches and burning foot and palms. I also have on and off pharingitis and mild fever and extreme fatigue. The only risky exposure now I assume I did was deep kiss a message parlour girl. So the doctor now thinks I could have contacted cytomegalo or Epstein-Barr viruses. Did anybody have any such episode. I am still awaiting on the results. Also I had taken in mid November I had taken a flu shot and since then I have had muscle aches and twitching all over. Has anyone gone through similar phase? I am TOTALLY in pain and at loss why this is all happening to me. Has anyone recovered fully from these viruses?
Andrew
desert_rider: I know where you are coming from. In my case I did test for an active/recent EBV infection after the onset of my illness, so it might be that is still what is bothering me these 11 months later. Keep in mind also that there are a lot of other viruses that can make you feel tired and drag you down. One of them that is also sexually transmitted is HPV. This is the virus that causes common warts as well as genital warts (different varieties of the virus cause different types of warts and and/or other symptoms), as well as cervical cancer in some women. There are many strains of it, and you cannot be treated for it, you just have to let it run its course. I hope you feel back to normal soon!
I visited my doctor today and he told me that my CMV antibodies are positive and EBV antibodies negative. But the CMV antibodies are not recent ones and I had no CMV virus since CMV(and EBV) viral load was neg. So, it looks like it's none of the known viruses(EBV, CMV, HIV) that are bothering me. I am at loss why I feel so fatigued and stressed. Now my doctor ordered some tests for Myesthena Gravis. It looks I am running after tests without any confirmatory diagnosis.
Tomorrow is my appointment with my Doctor. He has ordered, EBV, CMV and a throat swab. Keeping my finger's crossed. My leg and trunk pain have been progressively getting worser as the day progresses. Looks like my symtoms now more and more look like Myesthania Gravis. Has anyone experienced with the progressive weakening of muscles during the day after any major viral attack? Cannot wait to meet the doc.
Thanks Teak for posting the info on EBV. I just called the lab and they said they have my results ready but cannot give it to me and I need to know the outcome through my GP. Waiting eagerly for my appointment with GP.
National Center for Infectious Diseases
Epstein-Barr Virus and Infectious Mononucleosis
DISEASE INFORMATION
Epstein-Barr virus, frequently referred to as EBV, is a member of the herpesvirus family and one of the most common human viruses. The virus occurs worldwide, and most people become infected with EBV sometime during their lives. In the United States, as many as 95% of adults between 35 and 40 years of age have been infected. Infants become susceptible to EBV as soon as maternal antibody protection (present at birth) disappears. Many children become infected with EBV, and these infections usually cause no symptoms or are indistinguishable from the other mild, brief illnesses of childhood. In the United States and in other developed countries, many persons are not infected with EBV in their childhood years. When infection with EBV occurs during adolescence or young adulthood, it causes infectious mononucleosis 35% to 50% of the time.
Symptoms of infectious mononucleosis are fever, sore throat, and swollen lymph glands. Sometimes, a swollen spleen or liver involvement may develop. Heart problems or involvement of the central nervous system occurs only rarely, and infectious mononucleosis is almost never fatal. There are no known associations between active EBV infection and problems during pregnancy, such as miscarriages or birth defects. Although the symptoms of infectious mononucleosis usually resolve in 1 or 2 months, EBV remains dormant or latent in a few cells in the throat and blood for the rest of the person's life. Periodically, the virus can reactivate and is commonly found in the saliva of infected persons. This reactivation usually occurs without symptoms of illness.
EBV also establishes a lifelong dormant infection in some cells of the body's immune system. A late event in a very few carriers of this virus is the emergence of Burkitt's lymphoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma, two rare cancers that are not normally found in the United States. EBV appears to play an important role in these malignancies, but is probably not the sole cause of disease.
Most individuals exposed to people with infectious mononucleosis have previously been infected with EBV and are not at risk for infectious mononucleosis. In addition, transmission of EBV requires intimate contact with the saliva (found in the mouth) of an infected person. Transmission of this virus through the air or blood does not normally occur. The incubation period, or the time from infection to appearance of symptoms, ranges from 4 to 6 weeks. Persons with infectious mononucleosis may be able to spread the infection to others for a period of weeks. However, no special precautions or isolation procedures are recommended, since the virus is also found frequently in the saliva of healthy people. In fact, many healthy people can carry and spread the virus intermittently for life. These people are usually the primary reservoir for person-to-person transmission. For this reason, transmission of the virus is almost impossible to prevent.
Epstein-Barr Virus and Infectious Mononucleosis
DISEASE INFORMATION
Epstein-Barr virus, frequently referred to as EBV, is a member of the herpesvirus family and one of the most common human viruses. The virus occurs worldwide, and most people become infected with EBV sometime during their lives. In the United States, as many as 95% of adults between 35 and 40 years of age have been infected. Infants become susceptible to EBV as soon as maternal antibody protection (present at birth) disappears. Many children become infected with EBV, and these infections usually cause no symptoms or are indistinguishable from the other mild, brief illnesses of childhood. In the United States and in other developed countries, many persons are not infected with EBV in their childhood years. When infection with EBV occurs during adolescence or young adulthood, it causes infectious mononucleosis 35% to 50% of the time.
Symptoms of infectious mononucleosis are fever, sore throat, and swollen lymph glands. Sometimes, a swollen spleen or liver involvement may develop. Heart problems or involvement of the central nervous system occurs only rarely, and infectious mononucleosis is almost never fatal. There are no known associations between active EBV infection and problems during pregnancy, such as miscarriages or birth defects. Although the symptoms of infectious mononucleosis usually resolve in 1 or 2 months, EBV remains dormant or latent in a few cells in the throat and blood for the rest of the person's life. Periodically, the virus can reactivate and is commonly found in the saliva of infected persons. This reactivation usually occurs without symptoms of illness.
EBV also establishes a lifelong dormant infection in some cells of the body's immune system. A late event in a very few carriers of this virus is the emergence of Burkitt's lymphoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma, two rare cancers that are not normally found in the United States. EBV appears to play an important role in these malignancies, but is probably not the sole cause of disease.
Most individuals exposed to people with infectious mononucleosis have previously been infected with EBV and are not at risk for infectious mononucleosis. In addition, transmission of EBV requires intimate contact with the saliva (found in the mouth) of an infected person. Transmission of this virus through the air or blood does not normally occur. The incubation period, or the time from infection to appearance of symptoms, ranges from 4 to 6 weeks. Persons with infectious mononucleosis may be able to spread the infection to others for a period of weeks. However, no special precautions or isolation procedures are recommended, since the virus is also found frequently in the saliva of healthy people. In fact, many healthy people can carry and spread the virus intermittently for life. These people are usually the primary reservoir for person-to-person transmission. For this reason, transmission of the virus is almost impossible to prevent.
Thanks Ronnie for fore warning me ahead of my EBV results. I agree there is disagreement in medical community regarding EBV and CFS. Let's see what my final diagnosis is. I am particularly worried about my worsening muscle fatigue and weakness. It could also be CFS related or gravis. Hopefully something I can recover fully from.
Just a warning that EBV test interpretation is very much an art form from what I have read. If you think HIV testing is confusing, don't even start researching EBV testing. Since the vast majority of adults have already been exposed to EBV and carry it for life, determining a recent EBV infection (and subsequent mononucleosis illness) is the key. The mere fact that you have EBV in your system means nothing because the vast majority of adults do and have had it since probably their teenage years. There are tests that can somewhat reliably determine if the infection is recent, but the entire subject of EBV testing and connecting it to a flu-like illness is not cut and dry. You may want to read up on it, but I have done that also and it is somewhat convoluted if you ask me. EBV was at one time connected to "chronic fatigue syndrome" but this condition and the link to EBV is not generally accepted in the medical community from what I have read. Best of luck to you!
I had a potentially very risky sexual encounter in early February of 2006, the likes of which I had never done before and will never do again. Like you, I have tested negative for HIV. In my case with numerous tests out to 6 months, including two PCRs. I have not tested past 6 months yet, but plan on again at the 12 month mark. I'm not sure if my story is helpful to you, but whatever happened to me on that night in Feb of '06, I've never been the same since. I was diagnosed with EBV (mono) early on (about 7 weeks past the incident), but since the original incident, I have been through health issues the likes of which I had never experienced before including (I was always healthy before):
I now get a lot warts on my hands all the time, new ones appear weekly that I have to treat with wart compound to eliminate. I never used to get warts.
I have had a constant "feverish" feeling in my neck since about a month after the encounter which has subsided some, but has never gone away. I just feel like I'm feverish all the time even if my temp is normal.
My neck appears larger than it used to. This is especially backed up when I see people again who I have not seen since before the incident. I have even had a few relatives independently say my neck looks like it almost needs lypo-suction because it looks sort of swollen and un-natural.
Whatever happened to me, it happened as a result of a sexual encounter. It appears not to be HIV, but it must be some virus or combination of viruses, maybe one of the stronger HPV viruses along with EBV. Whatever happened to me, I've never felt well since the incident... I hope you are luckier than I have been so far...
I now get a lot warts on my hands all the time, new ones appear weekly that I have to treat with wart compound to eliminate. I never used to get warts.
I have had a constant "feverish" feeling in my neck since about a month after the encounter which has subsided some, but has never gone away. I just feel like I'm feverish all the time even if my temp is normal.
My neck appears larger than it used to. This is especially backed up when I see people again who I have not seen since before the incident. I have even had a few relatives independently say my neck looks like it almost needs lypo-suction because it looks sort of swollen and un-natural.
Whatever happened to me, it happened as a result of a sexual encounter. It appears not to be HIV, but it must be some virus or combination of viruses, maybe one of the stronger HPV viruses along with EBV. Whatever happened to me, I've never felt well since the incident... I hope you are luckier than I have been so far...
I was diagnosed with the Epstein-Barr virus, or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, around 14 years ago. I had extremely swollen lymph nodes in my neck, as well as my axillary region (under my arms), off and on sore throat, low grade fevers, sleep problems, and general unwellness. It took about a year to get diagnosed, and during that time I feared HIV, but didn't have the balls to get tested.
Finally, I did, and was negative. I had been reading info on Chronic Fatigue, and requested a blood test to measure the level of Epstein-Barr virus in my blood, turned out it was abnormally high. My symptoms lasted for about another year consistently, then began on and off, depending on my stress level. It's my understanding that the virus is related to Mono, which can be passed thru saliva.
What helped me was exercise, eating healthy, and relatively high doses of L-Lysine, an amino acid you can buy in capsule form. Apparently, when taken on an empty stomach, it has anti-viral properties.
Finally, I did, and was negative. I had been reading info on Chronic Fatigue, and requested a blood test to measure the level of Epstein-Barr virus in my blood, turned out it was abnormally high. My symptoms lasted for about another year consistently, then began on and off, depending on my stress level. It's my understanding that the virus is related to Mono, which can be passed thru saliva.
What helped me was exercise, eating healthy, and relatively high doses of L-Lysine, an amino acid you can buy in capsule form. Apparently, when taken on an empty stomach, it has anti-viral properties.
I read your thread and really feel that you didn't have a risk to be even tested. Whatever problem you are having with your throat seems to be unrelated to HIV keeping in view the exposure you had.
Also, to give you hope, yes you can recover from this virus. For me, it isn't like popping and antibiotic and getting over strep throat, it's more of a maintenance treatment. When I get overly stressed, my body freaks out. When I first got sick, I had the symptoms I mentioned about, and I felt genuinely sick during that time. Since then, however, it's more of a run-down feeling...I'll get tired, my joints will ache, or I'll have the occasional night sweat. Gone are the constant fevers, sore throats, and swollen glands. I don't feel sick on a daily basis, most of the time I feel perfectly normal.
Another thing that really helped me was seeing a therapist to work out the emotional aspects of my illness. My sickness brought up a gazillion and a half issues that I'd been dutifully supressing, until I started feeling so shitty, I didn't have the energy for denial anymore. My recommendation is to first, find a good doctor that you trust, and can communicate with you. Maybe try a holistic or naturopathic physician, as alot of the treatments for Epstein-Barr don't have their roots in western medicine. Good luck, and keep your chin up. It sucks to feel like a bag of **** all the time, but this is NOT life sentence, you will get better!
Another thing that really helped me was seeing a therapist to work out the emotional aspects of my illness. My sickness brought up a gazillion and a half issues that I'd been dutifully supressing, until I started feeling so shitty, I didn't have the energy for denial anymore. My recommendation is to first, find a good doctor that you trust, and can communicate with you. Maybe try a holistic or naturopathic physician, as alot of the treatments for Epstein-Barr don't have their roots in western medicine. Good luck, and keep your chin up. It sucks to feel like a bag of **** all the time, but this is NOT life sentence, you will get better!
o_g, you mention that for last 4 months you have had mild throat irritation. Sometimes it feels like tonsil stones but a few times I have seen a white throat ulcer that has persisited for almost 4 months now. Do you also have some cough from time to time ? I am asking because I have the same symptoms as what you have describe. I have been to the doctor and he has refused to do a test for me the second time after 4 month. I last tested in November 2006 ( after 3 month of exposure ). I too am going crazy, why this is happening ? It seems not to go away. What is it, I do not really know and it is driving me nuts everyday.
The doctor has explain to me that I am perfectly ok. But what is bugging me is my throat and my cough from time to time
Please o_g can you share some of your things you are experiencing. I am 40 and very very lost of what else I can do. I have a family and I am very worried I might get my wife infected.
The doctor has explain to me that I am perfectly ok. But what is bugging me is my throat and my cough from time to time
Please o_g can you share some of your things you are experiencing. I am 40 and very very lost of what else I can do. I have a family and I am very worried I might get my wife infected.
Well, I didn't really get a check done for potassium/B-12 levels but did start taking B-12 pills and other vitamins and the burning/hurting feeling did get better over time but did never completely go. However, I am not sure if the pills really helped or was it time which heals everything. The best part being I visited Doctors more than 50 times in 3 months duration and never before I had even gone to a hospital in my life. Never before did I physically feel this way also. There hasn't been a day in last 9 months when 5-6 of stated hardcore symptoms have not persited simultaneously in a single day.
Great that you are in good health. It's very encouraging that you are on your path to recovery. Keep it up and best wishes for your continued good health. Thanks for your tips in case I get diagnosed with this virus. The problem is I guess I have gotten into tailspin because of number of factors effecting me at the same time. I took a flu shot when I was just recovering from a bout of viral fever in mid November. Since then I am having muscle soreness and aches. I heard that about 70-80% of the US population is effected by this virus. So, hopefully nothing serious. Yes, I am suffering from EXACTLY similar symptoms like yours. When I say I have joint pains to my friends they tell me that I have become old ... I am just 27 years old and really want to have a great outdoor life. I hope these viruses(EBV or CMV) do not curtail my fun.
Exactly one knows when something is wrong. Did you check your potassium levels, for me it was kinda below normal, but after taking pottasium and B-complex supplements things are easing a bit, like burning and pain in muscles. I never knew I could catch some virus by kissing and my immune system thrown off-track.
Anxiety and depression is what my doctors also told me. They asked me to forget about it an move on. My ankles and knees also hurt real bad along with burning from 2-6 weeks. It became even difficult to wear shoes. Worst, my exposure involved no kissing so CMV and EBV do not come into picture unless I got CMV as a result of lowered immune system. I kept on telling my docs that I think I am suffering from peripheral neuropathy but they did notgive it a serious thought. Also my nerves in hands and feet twitch many times. It scares me to know that doctors misdiagnosed acute infection from so many personal stories. I take solace in my 12 week negative test but I am just not OK. You do know when something is not right.
Hi o_g,
I am not just suffering from burning feet and palms, but also almost debilitating lower limb muscle aches. I have met many docs and most of them say HIV is not my problem. So, the HIV specialist(he is a infectious diseases doc) told me I could have gotten some other viruses(EBV or CMV) into my system and has ordered a tests for these. I am still anxiously waiting for these results. Also not sure if the flu shot is playing a role in these.
Burning feet and palms also could be due to anxiety or depression. That is what most of the Docs I have consulted told me. But, I do think I am suffering still from some kind of virus.
What did your doc say?
Thanks
I am not just suffering from burning feet and palms, but also almost debilitating lower limb muscle aches. I have met many docs and most of them say HIV is not my problem. So, the HIV specialist(he is a infectious diseases doc) told me I could have gotten some other viruses(EBV or CMV) into my system and has ordered a tests for these. I am still anxiously waiting for these results. Also not sure if the flu shot is playing a role in these.
Burning feet and palms also could be due to anxiety or depression. That is what most of the Docs I have consulted told me. But, I do think I am suffering still from some kind of virus.
What did your doc say?
Thanks
Well, actually, I had those symptoms starting around 11-12 days post exposure and few are still ongoing almost 9 months post exposure. I had burning/hurting palms and soles and like u my exposure was also condom break. The burning part really freaks me out still. But, now for last 4 months I have had mild throat irritation. Sometimes it feels like tonsil stones but a few times I have seen a white throat ulcer that has persisited for almost 4 months now. But, looking at the brighter side u have had ur RNA test and that came negative which is a good proof that u don't have it.
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