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Strange symptoms: am I at risk?
Dear doctors,
I wonder if you could help me. Please bear with me; I'm sorry for the long question, but I have no one to talk to about this yet, and attempting to be thorough. I am extremely paranoid about a regretful encounter I had with a male about 11 weeks ago. I gave him oral, and he began to ejaculate into my mouth/throat against my wishes. It hit the space between the back of my throat, leading to my nose. I withdrew pretty quickly, and spat ferociously, and rinsed my mouth with water later (after say 10-15 mins). He is allegedly safe, but I'm really terrified. I have good oral hygiene, and did not brush my teeth prior to or after this. After 3 weeks, I experienced a mild sore throat and runny nose - no fever at all (36.7 ºC was average), no lymph node tenderness/swelling or aches; just a feeling of tiredness that you normally get when I'll. I've had flu before, and this was definitely not it. I suppose it is possible that I just caught a common cold, since I had slept under very cold air conditioning the night before, but forgive me for detailing everything in my attempt to be thorough. These cold-like symptoms lasted around 5 days and passed. At around 6 weeks, I had a transient bout of diarrhoea that subsided by the next day. No rashes at all to date, or any other symptoms of note, except for the following - which has concerned me the most.
At about 7 weeks, I began experiencing a mild discomfort around my larynx. The sensation felt like a light bruise, on the right side of my voice box. I palpated my neck many times. I'm not sure what I'm looking for, but towards the rear, underside of my neck, I felt two large, flat rubbery structures (maybe 1.5 cm long) - which I now know to be the submandibular salivary glands. The gland on the right side may be slightly larger than the left. They're not at all sore or tender to the touch, but the right one seems to me like a pressure point for the mild discomfort I was feeling on the right of my larynx. No lymph nodes appear significantly swollen, but with a lot of deep palpating, one or two might be only slightly sore sometimes. But nothing dramatic. I was very briefly examined by an ENT doctor who said all was clear, with nothing wrong. A second ENT requested an ultrasound, and found the right gland to be mildly enlarged, but no focal lesions or masses etc. But this very mild discomfort has persisted - it flares up towards the evenings, and is mostly felt when I'm swallowing a cold drink, for example. The sensation feels like tension or pulling in the region. All doctors have said there's nothing wrong, but it's been annoying and concerning me. I'm aware that early presentation of the virus can result in swelling of salivary glands (commonly parotid, occasionally submandibular). But how early? I can't seem to find any timelines for salivary gland swelling. When I clench my jaw, and the two muscles protrude from the back of the jawline, the one on the right side protrudes more than the left, presumably at the region of the parotid gland. Beneath my tongue looks normal, except for a very small (1mm), clear bump. Oral mucocele?
I've been on antibiotic, but my neck discomfort remains as stubborn as ever - even after all this time.
I know you wisely state that this was a no risk exposure, but having trawled the internet, there are accounts written by people who believe they are positive solely because of an oral exposure. My worry is the fluid hit the back of my throat. I didn't rinse immediately, but spat ferociously, with the thought that contact with saliva would kill any potential virus. I know the answer is a test, but I will not have an opportunity to get tested for the next few months, and really wanted some peace of mind. I'm terrified. Do you think anything I've described sounds like ARS or early infection symptoms (particularly the salivary gland)? Many thanks, in advance, for your help. I can't talk to anyone about this at the moment, and would really love a professional opinion before I drive myself insane. Once again - thank you sincerely.
I wonder if you could help me. Please bear with me; I'm sorry for the long question, but I have no one to talk to about this yet, and attempting to be thorough. I am extremely paranoid about a regretful encounter I had with a male about 11 weeks ago. I gave him oral, and he began to ejaculate into my mouth/throat against my wishes. It hit the space between the back of my throat, leading to my nose. I withdrew pretty quickly, and spat ferociously, and rinsed my mouth with water later (after say 10-15 mins). He is allegedly safe, but I'm really terrified. I have good oral hygiene, and did not brush my teeth prior to or after this. After 3 weeks, I experienced a mild sore throat and runny nose - no fever at all (36.7 ºC was average), no lymph node tenderness/swelling or aches; just a feeling of tiredness that you normally get when I'll. I've had flu before, and this was definitely not it. I suppose it is possible that I just caught a common cold, since I had slept under very cold air conditioning the night before, but forgive me for detailing everything in my attempt to be thorough. These cold-like symptoms lasted around 5 days and passed. At around 6 weeks, I had a transient bout of diarrhoea that subsided by the next day. No rashes at all to date, or any other symptoms of note, except for the following - which has concerned me the most.
At about 7 weeks, I began experiencing a mild discomfort around my larynx. The sensation felt like a light bruise, on the right side of my voice box. I palpated my neck many times. I'm not sure what I'm looking for, but towards the rear, underside of my neck, I felt two large, flat rubbery structures (maybe 1.5 cm long) - which I now know to be the submandibular salivary glands. The gland on the right side may be slightly larger than the left. They're not at all sore or tender to the touch, but the right one seems to me like a pressure point for the mild discomfort I was feeling on the right of my larynx. No lymph nodes appear significantly swollen, but with a lot of deep palpating, one or two might be only slightly sore sometimes. But nothing dramatic. I was very briefly examined by an ENT doctor who said all was clear, with nothing wrong. A second ENT requested an ultrasound, and found the right gland to be mildly enlarged, but no focal lesions or masses etc. But this very mild discomfort has persisted - it flares up towards the evenings, and is mostly felt when I'm swallowing a cold drink, for example. The sensation feels like tension or pulling in the region. All doctors have said there's nothing wrong, but it's been annoying and concerning me. I'm aware that early presentation of the virus can result in swelling of salivary glands (commonly parotid, occasionally submandibular). But how early? I can't seem to find any timelines for salivary gland swelling. When I clench my jaw, and the two muscles protrude from the back of the jawline, the one on the right side protrudes more than the left, presumably at the region of the parotid gland. Beneath my tongue looks normal, except for a very small (1mm), clear bump. Oral mucocele?
I've been on antibiotic, but my neck discomfort remains as stubborn as ever - even after all this time.
I know you wisely state that this was a no risk exposure, but having trawled the internet, there are accounts written by people who believe they are positive solely because of an oral exposure. My worry is the fluid hit the back of my throat. I didn't rinse immediately, but spat ferociously, with the thought that contact with saliva would kill any potential virus. I know the answer is a test, but I will not have an opportunity to get tested for the next few months, and really wanted some peace of mind. I'm terrified. Do you think anything I've described sounds like ARS or early infection symptoms (particularly the salivary gland)? Many thanks, in advance, for your help. I can't talk to anyone about this at the moment, and would really love a professional opinion before I drive myself insane. Once again - thank you sincerely.
HIV is not transmitted this way , your saliva negated the virus if he even had it. We all have most of the symptoms that you are describing... They are far from abnormal. I will not even begin to refute your other sources of information. As you stated... Your anxiety over this matter is magnifying any normal bodily occurance into HIV infection . My suggestion to you is to test as soon as possible only for your own piece of mind, as nothing we can say will give you that.
Randall
Randall
1 Comments
Many thanks, Randall! Having trouble posting comments from my phone. You have eased my mind - thank you!
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