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really confused

Hi i am 29 year old uncircumcised male i had unprotected sex with a female 7 years back after a few weeks i noticed smelly puss like discharge from my penis i did not give ne medical attention to it for years it eventually went away i was not in the habit of retracting my foreskin and cleaning it but one day i did and noticed red rashes over my penis head and yeast like formation over the head which i could peel off like skin after that i started cleaning my penis retracting my foreskin during showers everyday it helped with the discharge but from that time i was left with lesions under my foreskin which never seem to heal the lesions are moist red and shiny which can be torn open they always come and go on their own after a few years i had myself tested for hiv hsv and sphyllis which all came negative i had igg and igm test for hsv 1 and 2 done but a few days back i went to my general physician and he says i could have herpes as my lesions look typical my question is how reliable was the hsv igg and igm test i had for both hsv 1 and hsv 2 and how much can i trust this blood test and if i do not have herpes than what this could be which can be mistaken as herpes
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101028 tn?1419603004
visual diagnosis isn't appropriate at this point with all the negative testing you've had.
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Avatar universal
i am going to keep going back but i have to come to a conclusion by choosing between visual diagnosis which is positive versus the blood and pcr swab test which is negative i dont know which one should i choose and rely upon
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
keep going back. I know it's a hassle and the cost adds up but it's the best you can do at this point.
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Avatar universal
i have already done a pcr swab within the 48 hours of outbreak and have received a negative result still the doctor says its herpes
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
visual diagnosis alone isn't adequate. be seen every time you have symptoms within 48 hours of their appearance for a lesion culture.
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Avatar universal
i am still having outbreaks which my derm thinks is herpes based on visual diagnosis i am so confused i dont know what to belive the derms visual diagnosis or the negative pcr swab and the blood test
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
it's not likely this is herpes going on.

see a dermatologist if things still aren't cleared up.
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Avatar universal
i got my pcr results it did not detect anything the swab was taken from a small lesion withing 48 hours since it appeared so i am wondering how accurate is the pcr swab test done on an outbreak which has appeared 7 years after the first outbreak now i have blood tests that are negative and also a pcr swab test that is negative but still have unexplained symptoms
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Avatar universal
would like to know more about the accuracy of pcr test if taken within 48 hours of the outbreak and also is the pcr swab test more accurate than the igg blood test
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
if this is negative, definitely time to move past thinking herpes.
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Avatar universal
i have got an outbreak again i have done a pcr test where they swabbed my lesion i hope i could get an accurate answer the swab had been taken within 48 hours from the first time i saw the lesion can you tell me how accurate this test is going to be
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101028 tn?1419603004
glad you are getting better answers finally :)
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Avatar universal
the derm has ruled out herpes in my case and diagnosed me with chronic balanitis but i lost my love due to this improper and inefficient diagnosis i hope this never happnes to anybody
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
yes indeed you can have a wrong visual diagnosis.

continue to follow up with your dermatologist as needed.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
i went to another derm and he saw the symptoms and ruled them out as not being herpes instead he told me it could be chronic balanitis so now i have 2 blood test negative and one derm saying that the symptoms are like chronic balanitis vs onother two derms saying i have herpes my question is can chronic balanitis be confused as herpes i am uncircumcised and my symptoms are under my foreskin
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
as was already discussed, a visual diagnosis of genital herpes is wrong 1/3 of the time which is why we recommend proper follow up testing. odds are you don't have genital herpes. do not take any herpes antivirals at this point. should you get a return of symptoms, be seen within 48 hours of their appearance for a lesion culture and typing.
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Avatar universal
so now what other kind of test can i ask the doctor to do besides the 2 negative blood tests to rule out herpes
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
only if started suppressively early on in infection.
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Avatar universal
can being on antiviral medicens like zovirax during the blood test have any effect on the test
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Avatar universal
But the chances seem to be very rare right
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101028 tn?1419603004
we don't know why some folks serorevert. they still have + lesion cultures though when tested.  
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Avatar universal
i have changed my derm and now he says i culd have chronic balanitis but i still do have a question regarding the herpeselect eia igg test do the igg antibody levels drop to undecetable level if i have waited for 7 years is it like too long of a wait that could cause the igg antibody level to drop to a level where it cannot be detected
Helpful - 0
101028 tn?1419603004
it's less than 5%.
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Avatar universal
do you kind of have how many % of people are like that
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