My doctor didn't take the swab from the lesion but all surrounding area. I guess we have many bacteria on the lady part. Can't those bacteria be confused for herpes ??
*"What exactly is seroconversion from HSV 1 to HSV 2? This is very confusing. A pediatrician once told me that pretty much hsv 1 and 2 are the same now.
Seroconversion means developing antibodies. Hsv1 doesn't seroconvert to hsv2. It will stay hsv1, no matter where you have it (orally or genitally). If you have it genitally, it's known as genital hsv1, or ghsv1. The number indicates the strain of the virus, not the location.
*"Another doctor misdiagnosed it mollescum contagiousm."
This is shameful. The two look and act nothing alike.
*"Why is the numerical value of the IgG negligible? My doctor specifically said that HSV 2 had a lower value than HSV 1 indicating a new infection. Where did she come up with that conclusion if these numbers can fluctuate constantly?
On that same note, if the numerical value is negligible, why is anything under 3.5 cause for confirmatory testing?"
It's not negligible, it just can't tell us everything. We just need to know if we have antibodies, not how many, and we've established that your doctor is a moron. The only thing that she might be right in is if you test again in a few weeks and your number is remarkably higher, indicating that you may have been seroconverting when you tested.
When the IgG tests were first used, there was this big study done, and we thought that 90% of those who tested positive for hsv2 didn't know they had it. Many of those people were low positives. Another study proved that about 50% of those who tested under a 3.5 on the hsv2 IgG didn't test positive on the Western Blot, which is how we know that the 1.10 positive range is too low. Also, we know that the closer you are to 1.10, the better the chance of a false positive.
*My doctor used SURESWAB®, HSV TYPE 1/2 mRNA, TMA. Is it possible that in her negligence in collecting swab by placing the swab directly on a countertop that it was contaminated along the way?
As far as I know, she did not clean the area before collecting the sample. I put everything from hydrocortisone to desitin on this area prior to this appointment. Possible that anything I applied topically could skew the result?
It's pretty hard to contaminate your swab with someone else's herpes. It dies quickly outside it's host. I'd be more interested in how long before your test did you use the hydrocortisone and desitin and terconazole, etc.
*Any idea the legal implications of this doctor not keeping tools sterile? I left the office and realized what the doctor had done and really regretted not realizing it at the time and saying something. Strongly considering writing the office manager.
I'm not a legal expert, so I couldn't begin to answer this question. Standard practices, especially now, include cleaning the table between patients, so I'd be very surprised if they didn't, though I'd wonder how they could prove that. Again, though, it would be hard to contaminate your swabs from the table. Even so, laying them on paper - either the paper on the table or the packaging of the swab - is a better idea.
*I am strongly considering Western Blot. I am the kind of obsessive person that needs to know all the information and have the most accurate definitive answer.
I can't say I'd be any different. My own tests were so conclusive from the start, so it's hard for me to say for sure what I'd do, but if you need the definitive answers, then get them.
*My last sexual encounter was with the 2.2 igG HSV 2 on April 12. Before that, February 1 was with someone questionable. The third man I have referenced has been everywhere in between but not in the last 2 months.
Had you been with HSV2 guy before April 12? When was your test? It can take up to 4 months to develop antibodies, so if April 12 was your first time with him, and you are actually positive, it didn't come from him if you tested sooner than a few weeks after. The earliest antibodies can develop is a few weeks. However, if your antibodies rise, it would make sense for it to be him.
*I want to get retested because my gut is telling me that the swab is wrong. This is the kind of thing that would happen to me, a positive resulting from a clerical error or something. How long do I need to wait if my last encounter was April 12 to get an absolutely accurate result?
12 weeks. If it's from April 12 guy, and you're already starting to develop antibodies, you will probably know for sure by now. 70% test positive by 6 weeks.
*What are the implications of a positive diagnosis on a future pregnancy?
The only possible complication would be is if you had an outbreak during delivery. Most doctors will put you on daily suppressive therapy for the last trimester to prevent this. If you do have an outbreak, you can have a c-section.
*Also, are you a medical professional or just an expert on this?
A bit of both, kind of. I've worked in the STD field for a long time, doing education stuff, not clinical, and have had herpes for 15+ years.
*Also, it is important to note that the site that the doctor swabbed remained unchanged for the duration of the symptoms. There were no stages. It was a cracked area of skin that looked a little lighter than the surrounding areas and was visible when I was originally diagnosed with a yeast infection. Symptoms persisted from April 12 - May 12. Improved drastically after application of clotrimazole and betamethasone dipropionate. It immediately felt better and cleared with 2 -3 days of using this.
I'm wondering, if you have herpes, that you had a really bad yeast infection, and the swab picked up herpes viral shedding, which can be triggered by another infection, like yeast or BV.
*It is my understanding that at this stage of infection, Valtrex would not have done much, especially clear it in just 2 - 3 days. I was also very farther into an “outbreak” than 48 hours to have a swab come back positive.
The last yeast infection I had was 6 years ago (ironically after sleeping with the same man) and I actually went to the doctor and asked him outright if it was herpes and he said no, it was an external yeast infection. This was so similar, although increased in severity. I am absolutely convinced it was not a herpes outbreak. It disappeared after the anti fungal anti inflammatory cream.
This is possible. It's also possible that since you have hsv1, it is keeping your hsv2 milder, so you aren't getting big, bad blisters.
A western blot would help sort this all out.
*My doctor is a moron and didn’t respond to any of my questions or symptoms.
I'm sorry. I hate doctors most of the time. :(
Okay, so your doctor is mixed up about some things, but your blood tests seem to confirm your swabs.
The IgM is designed to look for new infections (though it's terribly unreliable and shouldn't be used at all on anyone other than newborns), and the IgG looks for established infections. "Established" can be anything longer than a few weeks, though it varies from person to person. It can take up to 4 months to develop these antibodies, though some do as soon as 2-3 weeks.
So you've had a positive swab for hsv2 and a positive IgG blood test for hsv2. You're also positive for hsv1, meaning that you wouldn't actually have a "primary" hsv2 outbreak. A primary outbreak means your first hsv outbreak - having no antibodies for either hsv1 or hsv2. It's usually pretty bad. Having hsv1 prior to getting hsv2 usually keeps hsv2 fairly mild, but that's not a hard rule.
You could have a yeast infection, and a herpes outbreak. You could have a yeast infection that triggered hsv2 shedding that the culture picked up. Your yeast infection could have triggered a herpes outbreak, or vice versa.
I'm really hoping that they clean the table between patients in normal times (that's pretty standard), and do so now even more, but you won't get COVID from the swabs, and the swabs aren't sensitive enough to pick up herpes from the table, and herpes dies pretty quickly outside of it's host (the body).
So I'm sure you have a ton of questions, and I'm happy to help answer them. In the meantime, you can read the Herpes Handbook at https://westoverheights.com/herpes/the-updated-herpes-handbook/. It's free and written by one of the world's leading experts on herpes.
I've had hsv2 for over 15 years. You're going to be fine, I swear.