My Risk of Having HIV

Dear H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.,

I am a 28 year old male (gradate of Washington State University) and I have been stressing the fact I might have contracted HIV. About four years ago, I had unprotected sex with an older woman who was just recently divorced. I meet her at a bar and it looks like she went to bars a lot. We had unprotected sex and I never seen her again.

The beginning of this year, I tested positive for Lyme disease (due to muscle twitching shooting muscle and joint pains). I researched Lyme disease testing on the internet, and it appears the HIV testing (Elisa/Western Blot) is identical to Lyme disease testing. Plus on top of it all, I read that a “false positive” Lyme test means you either have HIV or Epson Barr Virus. This scares the hell out of me, now I think I might have contracted HIV from the one unproductive encounter, I had four years ago. Please help!

1) What is the risk of me contracted HIV from the above encounter? Note: She said she wasn’t wet and we stopped having sex after 3-5 minutes.  

2) Are muscle and joint pains a sign of HIV? Note: my muscle and joint pains are sharp and last for a few seconds, go away and come back. They are not consistent.

3) Does a positive Lyme disease test mean I might have HIV?

4) I also had a CBC complete blood count test, which can back “no diff” (I think that means normal). PLEASE and I ask you PLEASE tell me after four years of the HIV infection being in a persons body, their white blood cell count (or any other blood cell count) would “not” be normal? This way I can kind of have some assurance, since my CBC is normal.

Thanks so much doctor, you’re a good man,

P.S. Best medical website on the net!

Go Cougars beat Dawgs!

Brad

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

You describe a low-risk scenario for HIV.  It is really rare for people to acquire HIV from one-time heterosexual encounters in the US.  The chance your partner had HIV is near zero, and if she had it the chance of transmission to you was no more than one chance in 1,000.  Putting those two statistics together makes it almost impossible you acquired HIV.

But the question is why you are asking about it here.  The way to know is to be tested.  I haven't even read your numbered questions as I write this reply, because what you ask and my answers will make no difference:  get tested.  If your test is negative, you weren't infected.  All the Lyme business makes no difference in that fact.  (By the way, Lyme disease blood tests are complicated to interpret.  By itself, a positive blood test does not establish a diagnosis of Lyme disease.  You must see a highly qualified specialist to interpret the result and advise you about its meaning.)

Now to the questions:

1) Zero risk, for practical purposses.  See above.

2) No, the sort of muscle pain you describe is not an HIV symptom.

3) No.  A positive Lyme test says absolutely nothing about whether or not someone has HIV.

4) "No diff" means that your blood was not analyzed to learn the numbers of the different types of white blood cells present.  As you suspect, that is often the routine when the WBC count is normal.  Your normal CBC doesn't mean anything one way or the other with respect to HIV (or to Lyme disease, for that matter).

Bottom line:  Find a provider who is knowledgeable about both Lyme disease and HIV, such as an infectious diseases specialist.  Have an HIV test.  But in the meantime, you have no reason to be worried about HIV and can expect a negative test result.

Regards--  HHH, MD

[badday103]

The test are totally different. The tests for lyme disease test specifically for the B. burgdorferi antibosies.  This has nothing to do with western blot that tests for hiv.

[Brad1980]

Dear H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.,

5 “10 190lbs when I tested positive for Lyme. Two –Three weeks later I weighted in at 172. I lost 18 pounds in two – three weeks. I still have a beer gut though (LOL). Is this a sign of rapid weight lose? What is rapid weight lose?

Thanks,

Brad

[Brad1980]

hi badday103,

thanks for your help.

[Brad1980]

Dear H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.,

Thank you so much!

Now that I have an honest opinion from a professional like yourself. I am going to move foreword, and try my very best to stop worrying about me contracting HIV from this one instance of unprotected sex.