Aa
Confused
Hi i'm pretty confused it has been almost 6 months since i had protected sex with a stripper it did not last very long and it was protected 100% of the time, instantly after id say about 20mins later i felt a burning feeling on my penis and thought it was some type of std. Next morning i went to the dr office he tested my blood urine and found nothing but gave me some antibiotics i think it was surprex and one other kind. it did not work so i went in to see him again he re prescribed me them and again they did not work. I have seen many dr's and have tested for HIV many times all kinds of stds hepatitis and who knows what else. i've done PCR hiv tests twice and numerous antibody tests and all came back negative. at 5 months i had taken my last HIV antibody test which came back negative and i was told by a nurse to do a herpes test. I never thought about doing a herpes test because i have never had an outbreak. Ive had redness around the head of my penis and penis pain, the redness may have gotten a bit worse and the head looks a little discolored to me, I know what my penis looked like before this incident, long story short here were my results HSV - 1 IgG 4.79, HSV - 2 IgG 0.28, HSV - 1 IgM 0.76, HSV - 2 IgM 2.64. Now keep in mind this test was done 5 months after my possible exposure, my penis has been locked ever since this incident. My doctor has told me that i have HSV2. After my results i came to the site spoke to grace who tells me my doctor is wrong. I fear that it will show up after 6 months i've had pain in my penis and testicles, redness which seems to slightly be getting worse, pain in my butt and anus for some reason, and have been noticing weird feelings in my head as i feel around i've been feeling little bumps kind of swollen things appearing, which has been giving me the worst head aches. i'm even debating on shaving my head to get a better look on what it could be. I've had blurred vision for over 3 months what should i do from here?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I can't really offer you more from a general perspective than all of the providers you have seen in person. However, I can help you with the herpes question. I totally agree with Grace that your physician is wrong. IgM testing should never be used to diagnose herpes and you can see a perfect example of why = there are many false positives. You are five months out from any possible exposure, so if you were infected, your IgG would be positive for HSV 2, but it isn't. And you've got this weird IgM result to deal with. My opinion is that you do NOT have HSV 2 infection.
I don't think you have an STD, based on everything that you done in the way of testing.
Let me ask - do you also have a regular partner?
Terri
I don't think you have an STD, based on everything that you done in the way of testing.
Let me ask - do you also have a regular partner?
Terri
No Terri I do not have a regular sex partner, That was the first time this year that I had sex and I have not ever since then. I am just so worried about my head because I have been feeling little bumps on it and they seem to come an go by the day. My penis has been aching for over month now and I just dont understand if it was herpes if it would last this long. Right after my possible exposure i had all kinds of weird symptoms, I had a cough that started about a week after which lasted for over a month it was just a dry cough, about 4 weeks in i had the flu, lower back and knee aches, my pinky fingers would go numb at times, I had swollen glands in my neck which still come and go, the head of my penis has been changing a bit in color and a small amount of swelling very minor, but never any blisters pimples or open sores, recently ive had pain in my buttocks area and anus area. I'm just worried that at 6 months I am going to test positive on an IgG test. What is the possiblilty of this happening?
I'm sorry to bother you again, when i said i've felt bumps on my head i actually ment my scalp not the head of my penis, and within the past few days i've been feeling a bit of burning feeling on my face, eyes, and scalp. My eyes feel dry and burn. What do you think I should do. After 5 months of a possible exposure of one time protected sex with a stripper HSV - 1 IgG 4.79, HSV - 2 IgG 0.28, HSV - 1 IgM 0.76, HSV - 2 IgM 2.64. I called on the IgG test and they said it was an Elisa test. What should I do now? I do want to retest but an pretty terrified on the results, today is exactly 6 months after the incident happend. I want closure.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I would suggest that you have a dermatologist check out the bumps on your scalp.
I believe that your ELISA IgG indicates you don't have herpes type 2 but you could retest if you want to. Again, I don't agree with your doctor's interpretation of the IgM test.
Terri
I believe that your ELISA IgG indicates you don't have herpes type 2 but you could retest if you want to. Again, I don't agree with your doctor's interpretation of the IgM test.
Terri
How likely is it that it can take up to 6 months for my body to produce antibodies? I keep reading that 12 to 16 weeks is the most common time, and i took mine at 20 weeks. It even makes me start to consider HIV testing again, even though i took my last hiv test at 5 months and also have done 2 PCR Viral Tests which all have come back negative. I just want my life back.
Terri previously stated less than 5% of people take 6 months to develop antibodies.
You can test once more for peace of mind, but it's very unlikely it will become positive at this point.
You can test once more for peace of mind, but it's very unlikely it will become positive at this point.
Thanks for the advice Im just praying that the IgG keeps coming back negative. These past months have not been good i've had all kinds of issues happening to me, Could these symptoms be herpes symptoms, blurred vision, burning of the eyes, memory loss, neasua, headaches, dizziness?
None of your symptoms sounds herpetic in nature.
I honestly think that most (if not all) of your symptoms are psychosomatic.
Your exposure was protected and very very low risk for herpes (& she probably doesn't even have it!!)
I honestly think that most (if not all) of your symptoms are psychosomatic.
Your exposure was protected and very very low risk for herpes (& she probably doesn't even have it!!)
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
No, those are not symptoms of herpes, but they could certainly be symptoms of stress. I would try to turn the worry down several notches. Get some exercise, involve yourself in a project that benefits others, try to stop thinking about yourself for a while during this time of waiting for test results. I think it will help.
Terri
Terri
So today I went in to re test for hsv -2 IgG and it has been 25 weeks from possible exposure, over 6 months and I'm praying that it comes back negative like it did last month. Today I woke up with a cold sore on my lip, is it coincidental that this is happening to me or would hsv 2 have a effect on hsv 1? I still have never had an outbreak on my penis. Please help. I will get post my results when the doctor calls me back.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Nope, no relationship between having a cold sore and the possibility of having HSV 2.
Terri
Terri
Hi Terri sorry to bother you, but this week monday I went and seen a disease specialist He took a look at my penis and said it looked fine didnt think anything of it It had been 25 weeks past possible exposure which is a week over 6 months I had him test me for HSV - 2 and HIV, my results for HIV were non reactive and my HSV -2 IgG - .20 He said they were both negative and not to worry about anything. Is this it should i really let it go and no more HSV testing or could i possibly be one of the people who take longer to produce antibodies for it? I do appreciate all your help. My doc pretty much said its negative but if I do see any kind of outbreak then to come in for a swab test of the lesion.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Yes, now you can be reassured that you are NOT infected with HIV and HSV. And I would agree, if you have signs or symptoms of anything, please check in with your doctor.
Terri
Terri
Hi Terri sorry I have one more question I dont mean to bother you, I know you say that my test results and my timing are accurate, But the one thing that keeps me from believing is the bumps that im feeling on my head, I'm just wondering how common it is to have herpes on the head and is it very likely for me to have it if i did not have any outbreak of any kind down there? Thank you
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
It would be very unusual to have herpes on your head, and I don't think the symptoms would be bumps that continue to be present.
This will be the last post on this thread - all the best to you.
Terri
This will be the last post on this thread - all the best to you.
Terri
Thank you Terri for all your help, I just want to add one more thing, i have gotten a copy of my results and the HSV - 2 IgG - .02 not .20 It was actually even lower then the first time test with an IgG. I Hope thats even more good news.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
It is indeed.
Terri
Terri
After 7 months and I'm still having issues. Burning and discomfort down there sweeping of my neck lymph nodes. Both my of tests were negative for hsv-2 but my igm type specific was positive. I didn't even know they made a type specific igm test. What else could it be?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I think I've done as much as I can with you. You need to believe your results and move on from thinking you have genital herpes. There are no type specific IgM tests.
Terri
Terri
I have yet to find any info about a Type Specific IgM test on the internet and the doctors online also say they don't exist, but the reason why I asked is because the way my IgM test results came back were in a specific manor HSV-1 IgM, HSV-2 IGM. So that had me worried a bit, plus Grace mentioned that IgM tests do exist but they still aren't reliable. Just wanted a little more clarification on it.
Thanks
Thanks
The type specific IgM tests aren't reliable. It's probably cross reacting with the HSV-1 IgM antibody, which makes sense given that you're positive for HSV-1. I mean, no genital symptoms and several negative IgG tests up to 6 months out, you're not going to get any more certain than that. I mean, you're just not. I had a 12 week negative test that I'm leaning on right now and intend to retest at 6 months just for peace of mind. If my 6 month test is negative, I'll do the freaking polka all up and down the streets.
The thing that gets me is that I have not found any info on the internet about IgM type specific, I have read info saying that some labs will say the IgMs are type specific but they really are not. The thing that gets to me is all the symptoms i've had in the past and at the moment, everything except an out break, never a pimple, lesion, sore, or anything. I see some redness but the doctors would never consider Herpes. I just want closure to all of this and I want to be cured. Thanks for your help. You would think 6 months would be more then enough time for an IgG test to show up positive.
From what I gathered, the IgG tests aren't 100% anytime ever. I think it's like 95% accurate at 6 months and like 90% at 3 months or something along those lines. The probability of being positive or negative is additive, meaning that if your IgG test is 90% accurate, and your exposure was pretty low risk (1 chance in 1000???) and you haven't had any typical symptoms, then your chance of being truly negative is probably 99.8 percent.. the math isn't perfect, but you get the point.
I'm just taking the 6 month test to cover that extra 5%. After that, there's nothing else I can do but trust the tests and the doctors.
I'm just taking the 6 month test to cover that extra 5%. After that, there's nothing else I can do but trust the tests and the doctors.
Thanks I wish you the best of luck.
You are reading content posted in the Herpes Forum
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
