CONFUSED! No symptoms, but two consecutive low-positive HerpeSelect HSV-2 results. What now???
I am so glad to have found this forum!
First of all...
here are my test results:
on 11/03/2010
HSV-I IgG Test (HerpeSelect) 3.28 0.00-0.90
HSV- II IgG Test (HerpeSelect) 2.26 0.00-0.90
on 11/15/2010
HSV-I IgG Test (HerpeSelect) 4.07 0.00-0.90
HSV- II IgG Test (HerpeSelect) 3.00 0.00-0.90
The earlier of the tests was part of an 8-Panel Full STD Screening done at LabCorp and ordered through stdtestexpress.com. The second test was also done at a different LabCorp location and also ordered through stdtestexpresscom. The second test was only for HSV after getting the low positive result for HSV 2. I am not sure if the tests were indeed the HerpeSelect, as there seems to be some controversey on this website as to whether or not LabCorp actually uses HepreSelect anymore.
I am a 41 year old male.
This all started because my girlfriend, whom I love VERY much, got her first cold sore recently. I do seem to remember having a cold sore at sometime in my youth, but it has never been a reoccurring problem, and not something i have thought about much for years. However, seeing her so upset about this made me want to know exactly what is going on with my sexual
health. I got a physical last year which included what I thought was a complete STD screening, and was told I was STD free. So I called my doctor's office to inquire about what I was tested for and was surprised to find out that herpes was not included in this test! I had a physical a few years earlier at the same doctor's office and was told the same thing. Now I realize that I had never actually been tested for HSV!
So I got really nervous, since my girlfriend and I have been having unprotected sex
during the 2 years so far of our relationship. So I found a site online that offers confidential STD testing in my city, and quickly ordered a full test. My results came back negative for everything, except for the HSV results above. Now I am freaking out. Mostly that because of my ignorance about HSV and the tests I have received, that I have put her sexual
health in jeopardy. If I have HSV 2 and have transmitted it to her, she will be devastated. However, I have NEVER had any genital outbreaks. EVER. But I have had unprotected sex
over the years with monogamous partners who were also under the impression they were STD free. Now I realize that none of us had any real guarantee of this without specific HSV testing. I did have a period in my early 30s of sleeping around, but I always used condoms
So I am confused about these results. Even on the stdtestexpress.com site, they consider anything under 3.5 a low-positive. But since I have received 2 separate low-positive HSV 2 results, should i STILL get retested with the Western Blot or BioKit? Or is this just wishful thinking?
And if I do want to get the WB or the Biokit, how do I go about this? I can't seem to find out anything about how to actually get these tests done. Do I have to have these ordered by an MD? There is some 2 year old info about the WB here:http://www.racoon.com/herpes/WB_test.htm
However, I can't seem to find anything about the Biokit, other than seeing it mentioned in some of the threads on this site.
This is probably the most stressful thing I have ever dealt with.
I am trying to keep my calm as much as possible, and would like to know the best way to proceed to find out for sure what is happening. The experience of going to LabCorp for the tests was very impersonal and cold, and getting the phone consultations for the results from stdtestexpress.com was frustrating and confusing. Basically, if you get a positive result on the test, they require you to talk to a doctor from a company called "Consult A Doctor" to discuss the results. After the first test, the phone doctor just said I was positive an that I should see a doctor immediately for treatment. She didn't say anything about a "low-positive", and when I asked if the test was always right she said that i could get retested if I wanted to, but that it was probably a waste of time. It was only after doing hours of poking around on the web that I noticed that the stdtestexpress.com site itself suggests that a result under 3.5 is considered "low-positive."
The doctor I spoke with after the second test actually told me the WRONG results! She seemed annoyed that I was asking questions and that I had gotten a second test. When I explained why I had done this, she told me that I had a HSV2 result of 4.0, and that I should accept that I have HSV2!! Actually, it is 3.0 and still a low-positive.
I am confused, scared...but still want to be sure.
Any guidance would be greatly welcomed.