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Negative blood test, but constant symptoms. What could this be?
I've been experiencing pus-filled, pimple-like bumps, primarily on and inside the labia minora for the last 3-4 years. They never occur in an area with hair and do appear in different locations, not only in the Bartholin's glands. They occur several times a month. I manipulate them to express the contents, then they go away. They almost always start with a little itch. They're firm and feel like they're under the skin as opposed to a bubbly blister. Rarely they come to a head and develop a white top, but most of the time they're not visible except for a slight redness. Typically I discover them by feeling a bump when washing. Husband has never had any symptoms. Although I never had a typical initial outbreak (with swollen inguinal lymph nodes or flu-like symptoms) and even though they don't present or occur like typical herpes, I did take a Herpeselect blood test from AnyLabTestNow in Jan. 2011. Results were negative for both HSV1 & 2. I do go for my annual OB/GYN exam every year, but I've been fearful to bring this problem up, and have never had a culture done. I do have regular periods. I exercise 2-3 time a week and overall I'd say I'm healthy. Any ideas what this could be or what causes it? I thought it might be a weight thing, or hormone-related. Is it possible to have a negative blood test but actually have herpes?
Westernblot is much more accurate, maybe missing 2% but probably less.
Are you having swabs of sores? Or considering a daily swab of the location you believe is infected?
Are you having swabs of sores? Or considering a daily swab of the location you believe is infected?
When you say 1 out of 10 for HSV1 who are positive will test negative does that include repeated tests over two years including the Western Blot per ten persons or per ten tests? I have had 3 negative Herpes select and 1 negative Western Blot (after the second year of weird symptoms).
Thank you so much for the ongoing reassurance, Grace. I actually went this morning to try to get another blood test, but the place I went to a year and a half ago has raised their prices astronomically...needless to say, I was underfunded and left with no test. I like to think it was God trying to tell me something. :)
So of course I have one last question, and I hope you don't mind helping me once more. You have said three times now that my symptoms don't sound herpes related, and as someone with personal experience who has heard SO many examples and helped countless members, I do value your knowledge and counsel.
Aside from my negative blood test, would you please explain why my symptoms don't sound like herpes? I'm sure it has a lot to do with frequency of symptoms and their overall presentation (by the way, for clarification, in my very first post I indicated that I never get symptoms in an area with hair. I misspoke. I don't get them on the mons pubis, however, I do get them on the inside of the labia majora, where there is hair, but again, about 90% of the time it's only one at a time, and several times a month). There is just so much scary information out there, and so many variables that can come into play, such as false results and atypical presentations, that feed into my worry. I feel like I need to arm myself with solid reasons/evidence before I go to the doctor, because I know this is always the go-to diagnosis in cases like mine.
Thanks again for putting up with another post from me. I really do appreciate your time and input. I think I've exhausted all my questions for you, and I know that all that's left for me to do is to be professionally examined.
So of course I have one last question, and I hope you don't mind helping me once more. You have said three times now that my symptoms don't sound herpes related, and as someone with personal experience who has heard SO many examples and helped countless members, I do value your knowledge and counsel.
Aside from my negative blood test, would you please explain why my symptoms don't sound like herpes? I'm sure it has a lot to do with frequency of symptoms and their overall presentation (by the way, for clarification, in my very first post I indicated that I never get symptoms in an area with hair. I misspoke. I don't get them on the mons pubis, however, I do get them on the inside of the labia majora, where there is hair, but again, about 90% of the time it's only one at a time, and several times a month). There is just so much scary information out there, and so many variables that can come into play, such as false results and atypical presentations, that feed into my worry. I feel like I need to arm myself with solid reasons/evidence before I go to the doctor, because I know this is always the go-to diagnosis in cases like mine.
Thanks again for putting up with another post from me. I really do appreciate your time and input. I think I've exhausted all my questions for you, and I know that all that's left for me to do is to be professionally examined.
yes it's a well known fact that even the best blood tests still miss 1 out of every 10 hsv1 infections. that said, your symptoms do not sound herpes related at all as I've already said twice now.
follow up properly and regularly with a dermatologist at this point, not increase your fear and anxiety by reading about herpes over and over again! don't be your own worse enemy!
follow up properly and regularly with a dermatologist at this point, not increase your fear and anxiety by reading about herpes over and over again! don't be your own worse enemy!
Hi Grace,
Read an older post (from 2009) last night from Dr. HHH that was disturbing.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/STDs/Confused-about-My-Initial-Outbreak-and-not-Getting-Answers/show/1750341#post_8065382
In one of his answers, he said "It is equally likely that your partner has HSV-1 with a false negative blood test. The HSV-1 blood tests are falsely negative quite frequently."
This has me worried. Are HSV-1 blood tests really falsely negative THAT frequently? I'm still dealing with pimples is my vagina, and this revelation has me, again, concerned about the accuracy of my test results. After reading this thread, do you think HHH meant frequently falsely negative for a NEW infection?
Thank you again for your time.
Read an older post (from 2009) last night from Dr. HHH that was disturbing.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/STDs/Confused-about-My-Initial-Outbreak-and-not-Getting-Answers/show/1750341#post_8065382
In one of his answers, he said "It is equally likely that your partner has HSV-1 with a false negative blood test. The HSV-1 blood tests are falsely negative quite frequently."
This has me worried. Are HSV-1 blood tests really falsely negative THAT frequently? I'm still dealing with pimples is my vagina, and this revelation has me, again, concerned about the accuracy of my test results. After reading this thread, do you think HHH meant frequently falsely negative for a NEW infection?
Thank you again for your time.
once again, no reason to be thinking herpes. don't spend more money on testing, spend it to go and have fun!!
So I know I shouldn't be, but because I keep getting these pimples so frequently, I'm really struggling with doubting my negative test result (to which, unfortunately, I don't have the actual #, as I tested anonymously and disposed of the printout). I remember the relief I felt at the time of receiving the result, and as best as I can recall, I *think* the result was .2, and definitely less than .91.
Sometimes I feel like Terry's assessment of people's situations is so different than Drs. H&H, and when I read their (H&H) responses, I feel less concerned, but when I read Terry's, I start to worry...I know you personally deal with this yourself, Grace, so tell me, is it really all that unusual to have such frequent outbreaks, I know you personally deal with this yourself, Grace, so tell me, is it really all that unusual to have such frequent ongoing outbreaks? From what I gather in the Dr. forum, it seems that recurrent outbreaks are more on par with 3-4 times a year, rather than bi-monthly (~24x) like what I'm experiencing. Can you ever recall an instance where someone had persistent symptoms like mine? How accurate do you believe the Herpeselect test is when there's no danger of testing too early?
I know the very best thing for me to do is to see a dermatologist, and perhaps even to get the Western Blot, which will most definitely give me the answer I need. The easiest thing for me to do is to spend another $40 on a second IgG test, but I'm concerned that in the end, I still won't trust it.
Thanks again for your insight. It's always appreciated.
Sometimes I feel like Terry's assessment of people's situations is so different than Drs. H&H, and when I read their (H&H) responses, I feel less concerned, but when I read Terry's, I start to worry...I know you personally deal with this yourself, Grace, so tell me, is it really all that unusual to have such frequent outbreaks, I know you personally deal with this yourself, Grace, so tell me, is it really all that unusual to have such frequent ongoing outbreaks? From what I gather in the Dr. forum, it seems that recurrent outbreaks are more on par with 3-4 times a year, rather than bi-monthly (~24x) like what I'm experiencing. Can you ever recall an instance where someone had persistent symptoms like mine? How accurate do you believe the Herpeselect test is when there's no danger of testing too early?
I know the very best thing for me to do is to see a dermatologist, and perhaps even to get the Western Blot, which will most definitely give me the answer I need. The easiest thing for me to do is to spend another $40 on a second IgG test, but I'm concerned that in the end, I still won't trust it.
Thanks again for your insight. It's always appreciated.
Thank you very much for the response. I do take solace in the fact that I had a negative blood test. And for sure, the timing was well after antibodies would have been present.
I know it shouldn't be a concern, especially after reading *hundreds* of posts by Drs. H & H regarding typical herpes presentation/frequency and blood test validity, but after reading a few posts on the community forum that mention instances where people have symptoms/outbreaks, but never, for whatever reason, test positive, I do find myself second guessing my circumstances.
Thank you again for your insight. It is highly appreciated.
I know it shouldn't be a concern, especially after reading *hundreds* of posts by Drs. H & H regarding typical herpes presentation/frequency and blood test validity, but after reading a few posts on the community forum that mention instances where people have symptoms/outbreaks, but never, for whatever reason, test positive, I do find myself second guessing my circumstances.
Thank you again for your insight. It is highly appreciated.
I'd follow up with a dermatologist at this point. could be that your scalp issues and genital issues are related even so seeing someone that specializes in rashes/skin issues is the best follow up.
no reason to think that you have genital herpes. your description of symptoms doesn't sound at all like herpes as well as you tested negative.
stop picking at these too!
grace
no reason to think that you have genital herpes. your description of symptoms doesn't sound at all like herpes as well as you tested negative.
stop picking at these too!
grace
I've also been having a problem with my scalp that I'm wondering might somehow be related.
I probably should mention here that I was also tested for HIV, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis as well, all with negative results.
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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.
