Risk of exposure and are these symptoms

[So stupid_10]

Hi doctor,

I am very worried about having contracted hiv. My story is I had protected sex with a black sex worker (female, i am male) while on holidays in Spain. The problem is the comdom broke but this only happened when she changed position and the maximum unprotected exposure was 1 minute. I did not ejaculate inside her. This happened 21 days ago. At day 9/10 i had a sore throat and on day 13 i had mouth ulcers and white tongue, these had improved by day 18. On day 16 i got about 5 red spots under my rib cage and towards my lower back and these are a little itchy and slightly sore when i touch them. Yesterday (day 20) and today i have a slight touch of diarrhea. I have tested negative for chlamydia and gonnerhea and am awaiting results of hiv test taken on day 13. My doctor thinks my symptoms are unrelated. I should mention that i convinced my doctor to treat me for chlamydia (with azithromycin) and gonnorhea (with ciproxin) on day 5. I have been extremely stressed out about this since the very first day after the event.

My questions are:

What is my risk of infection?

Are these symptoms indicative of ARS or could they be stress?

Sorry to bother you but i'm extremely stressed out.

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

First, even if you had entirely unprotected sex (i.e., for several minutes) and if your partner had HIV, the statistical likelihood you would have been infected averages 1 chance in 2,000 episodes of vaginal sex.  Second, symptoms never are valid indicators of new HIV infection, because every single symptom caused by HIV is also caused by many other things, all more common than HIV infection.  And your symptoms don't sound like HIV anyway, as your own doctor already told you.  HIV testing is a good idea for anxiety relief when you learn the negative result.  However, 13 days is too early; you'll need another test, preferably 6 or more seeks after the event.

Thus, the direct answers to your questions are:  1) Less than 1 chance in many thousand.  2) There is no reason to suspect HIV as the cause of your symtpoms.  But they're not entirely due to stress, which doesn't cause mouth ulcers.  Most likely you caught some other virus at about the same time, maybe from the sex worker, maybe elsewhere.

Follow your provider's advice in regard to follow-up HIV testing.  But you can relax in the meantime; almost certainly you were not infected with HIV.

Best wishes--  HHH, MD

[sunsarethebest]

Your symtpoms do not sound like HIV and your test for HIV was a little early. Dr. HHH will tell you the risk level but im sure that you are going to be fine. Just have another HIV test at 6 weeks.

[So stupid_10]

Thank you doctor and thank you sunsarethebest. These positive comments mean alot to me. I know i'm probably blowing things out of proportion but the whole thing really scared me and i know i shouldn't be reading up on symptoms etc as these are probably only making me imagine i have new ones.

Just two final clarifications and i will stop then.

If ARS did occur would all symptoms come together?

Could the antibiotics i took have caused the white tongue and mouth ulcers?

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

ARS symptoms typically would all start within a few days of each other.  Many conditions can cause white tongue and mouth ulcers.  I don't know the cause in your case.  You should be asking your health care provider, not trying to figure it out through distant online advice.

This thread is over.