Am I safe to move on?

[homessun]

Hello Terri,
Like many folks who post on your forum I am nervous about my current situation.  I was in a relationship with my ex girlfriend for one year who had genital HSV-2.  We engaged in two occasions of condom protected sex and regularly practiced oral sex both her to me, and me to her.  She was not on suppressive therapy.  I never noticed any lesions on my genitals, except for one occasion (which I believe to have been atleast a couple months since we were together) after shaving my pubic area I developed two raised red 'lesions'.  Which I had examined by my GP but not cultured.  He said it was a result of shaving and not an STD.  It has been a year since our last sexual contact and my blood tests are negative for HSV-2.  I have had oral HSV-1 since childhood.  I know the blood tests are not nearly 100% accurate, so is it ok for me to move on with a normal sex life with future partners and be confident I do not have HSV2?  Will I put future partners at any risk?  And if so, is there ANYTHING I can do to further concrete a negative result?  Many, many thanks for your advice.

[Terri Warren, RN, Adult Nurse Practitioner]

The 4% per year is based on studies of couples where the female is infected and the male is not, they have sex twice a week, on average, condoms are not used and medicine is not used.  

Terri

[homessun]

I'm sorry Terri... did my last question go thru ok?

[homessun]

.

[homessun]

Thank you so much Terri.  I will try to move on.  One last question though, and then we can ditch this thread... I read that transmission rate of 4% translates into something like 1 in every 1,000 exposures?  Is this accurate? I would think 4% would be more like 1 in every 25 exposures?

[Terri Warren, RN, Adult Nurse Practitioner]

No, I do not

Terri

[homessun]

Do you feel I have a responsibility to disclose to future partners?

[Terri Warren, RN, Adult Nurse Practitioner]

Yes, I feel it is just fine for you to engage in normal sexual activity.  The best you can do is to get tested for HSV 2.  There is another test for herpes called a western blot, but in terms of being a good screening test, I think the usual IgG test are a good.  The western blot is a little more sensitive for HSV 1, but that's not what you need.  

You've been responsible and done what you can about this.  Now its time to move on and live fully.  Remember this, also.  The transmission rate between infected females and uninfected males, without condom and medicine, is only about 4%, you added condoms so you reduced that even farther.

Now start living fully and with gusto!

Terri