herpes tests accurate?

[stillconfused46]

A year ago I had my yearly gyno checkup.  I had my doctor check me for STD's cause I found out my husband had cheated on me.  I came back positive for chlamydia.  I was treated for that and everything else turned out negative.  I went back a couple weeks later to make sure the chlamydia was gone, and it was.  I have only had two sexual partners in my life.   About 6 months ago, my boyfriend and I had oral and vaginal sex.  I noticed a rash towards the end of the shaft of his penis.  I told him that it didn't look good and to go get it tested.  He went to a local clinic, and the doctor said it looked like herpes.  The doctor took a swab inside his urethra and it came back positive.  Doesn't the swab have to be of the rash itself, or can you get correct results from a urethra swab?

Also, after about two weeks, I started to have symptoms of herpes....itching and burning and soreness in the vaginal area, but no blisters, and my discharge was a cottage-cheese like consistency.  Could this be herpes or is it possibly just a yeast infection, or both?  

[gracefromHHP]

When you have an active herpes lesion - you are shedding from the entire anogenital area most times.  Yes sometimes you can pick up on herpes from a swab inside the urethra even if the rash is elsewhere.  urethral swabs aren't recommended though ( and aren't real fun either I'm sure ).  

At this point there's no way to tell who had what first. I do recommend however that you both get type specific herpes igg blood tests to confirm that you both have the same type(s) of herpes.  Itching and burning and discharge doesn't sound like herpes though it could've been that a yeast infection triggered a recurrence of herpes ( though you can have yeast and not have herpes act up if you do have herpes ).  You both at this point need to know who has what so that if you don't have herpes - you and your partner can be taking steps to lower your risk of contracting it.  I'd also call and see if you were ever tested for herpes when you asked for full std testing too. Most clinics don't include it but some do.

grace

[Emma_08]

From what I know, the swab should be taken from an actual lesion - did he have this rash around his urethra?  

When you noticed your vaginal symptoms, did you have a rash or any small cuts?  It sounds like this could have been a yeast infection, but I cannot make any type of diagnosis online (especially since I'm not a doctor!!).  If the symptoms come back, go to your gyn immediately.

You could always get a type-specific IgG antibody test, such as HerpeSelect, to see if you have been infected with HSV-2.  However, antibodies could take up to four months to show up as positive on a test.  Also, these tests tell nothing about when you were infected.  If you do have HSV-2, you could have been infected by your ex-husband.

Good luck!
Em