Blood Test

I am a 21 year old male About 3 weeks ago I was diagnosed with shingles on my lower back area I was prescribed antiviral meds and took them.  About 4 days later I went back in because I was nervous this could be HSV2 so I had a blood test done.  The test came back negative for the IGG herpes test as well as the IGM.  So my question is because I was on the antiviral medication and waited 4 days after the initial outbreak of it could this still be HSV2 or would I have most likely tested positive for at least the IGM test?

[gracefromHHP]

when was the last time you had sex?

grace

[tc22321]

well at the time before I took the test it was about 2 or three weeks prior to that.  

[gracefromHHP]

I removed your other post. please keep them all in this one. thank you!

no one thought to do a lesion culture of your rash I take it?

grace

[tc22321]

no they didnt they just told me it was shingles because it was to one side of the body.  Now I believe i will just have to wait 6 months and just take another blood test.  If i would have known I would have told them to do a culture on it.  

[tc22321]

I was reading about that IGM test being unreliable because IGM does not really come unless it is the first infection and only lasts a while after that infection.  However I was wondering is it fairly accurate if I tested negative when I had the sores present and the test was done 4 days after the sores appeared?  I haven't really read much about many false negatives... would this be common?  Most of the negative things I herd about the IGM is that they have to be done when sores are present, or that they have to be done right around the first outbreak,  or that they may give false positives??  My doctor acted like it would be strange if I had hsv2 outbreak and somehow tested negative for both the igg and igm.

[gracefromHHP]

At this point, nothing to do other than if the rash reoccurs, you know it isn't shingles and you can get a lesion culture on it. follow up with a repeat igg in a few months for peace of mind.
grace

[tc22321]

wait im confused how do i know its not shingles?  I had chickenpox when I was younger around 10...so cant it be shingles?

[tc22321]

o ok never mind I understand what you said....thats what I will do a month has passed already since i took the first test so in two months I will go in and get tested again.  I just was wondering why the doctor didnt tell me to do that she seemed as though the IGM test being negative was enough to say I don't have it on top of the negative IGG.  

[genx7]

You can only get shingles if you only had chickenpox before. Shingles is basically reactivation of chickenpox. So an adult who never had chickenpox before cannot get shingles because they havent had chickenpox yet.

[petal130]

Actually that's incorrect; shingles can also be transmitted to someone who has never had the chicken pox. That person, if infected by someone with shingles, would then have chicken pox. You can find this information on many reputable websites (Mayo Clinic, WebMD, Nat'l Institutes of Health).

[genx7]

Duh thats what i just said. Shingles is chickenpox

[genx7]

You cant get shingles if you never had chickenpox before because it would be called chickenpox. Chickenpox has to come before shingles

[petal130]

Yes, I stated that in my comment above. "That person, if infected by someone with shingles, would then have chicken pox."

I always am sure to make statements that are accurate, otherwise I don't post.

[gracefromHHP]

actually what genx said was accurate petal, I think you just misunderstood what he was trying to say ( omg, genx7 and I are thinking the same way for once? he he he )


You can not get shingles if you've never had chicken pox before meaning that if you didn't have chicken pox before and the doc says "it's shingles", it can't be. of course you can get chicken pox as an adult too.   In this situation however the OP plainly said they did have chicken pox as a child so yes indeed this could be shingles going on. since the incidence of shingles is very low in his age group, confirming it with a lesion culture would've been the best practice instead of a visual diagnosis.

If you've never had chicken pox before and are around someone with shingles, you can get chicken pox from them. It's all the herpes zoster virus just we give different names to it to keep it fun.

make more sense petal?  and this was what you were trying to say correct genx7?

grace

[petal130]

I hate to belabor this  - I'm baffled that my statement isn't saying the exact same thing. Semantics perhaps?:

"Shingles can also be transmitted to someone who has never had the chicken pox. That person, if infected by someone with shingles, would then have chicken pox."

Perhaps better stated by the NIH: "Shingles can be spread from an affected person to children or adults who have not had chickenpox. But instead of developing shingles, these people develop chickenpox."

Fred has shingles. His wife Martha does not. Fred transmits the herpes zoster virus to Martha. She now has chicken pox.

[gracefromHHP]

honestly petal I have no idea why you posted what you did in response to genx7's post hence why I felt the need to post what I did to hopefully clarify it for anyone reading this post.

grace

[petal130]

Understood...

[tc22321]

wow! haha yes i had chickenpox when I was younger.....I think the doc was just thinking it would be a strange occurrence to have HSV2 on my lower back and not on my genital parts...either way I think she should have done a culture...but is it true zoster is more painful for a long period after? because I noticed I still have some slight little tingles.  I also have HSV1 already so i think that may lower my risk for hsv2 as well but like everyone says you can never know until I take the test again...

[tc22321]

well i am going in for another blood test tomorrow and possibly for a culture.  There is one small red bump that appeared a few days ago but does not have a blister but it is causing me alot of distress.  I am hoping everything turns out ok.  

[gracefromHHP]

hsv1 doesn't provide any significant reduction in risk for hsv2.

being seen is a good idea. following up on your blood work at some point would also be helpful.

keep us posted!

grace

[tc22321]

I got the blood work done today its been about 9 weeks since my outbreak of what they thought was shingles.  I plan on getting one more test done in another 9 weeks to verify everything is good to go! I will keep you posted.

[tc22321]

well im happy to report that my hsv 2 was 0.0 on my blood test and it has been around 9 weeks since i have had any sexual activity.  I guess this is good news I may have another blood test in a few months just to make sure. But I assume there would have been some slight trace of antibodies by now if I had it by now but I would love opinions!