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STDs (Expert Forum)
Fear of HIV exposure
Answered by
University of Washington
Seattle - WA
Welcome to the STD Forum, which is intended only for questions and support pertaining to sexually transmitted diseases other than HIV/AIDS, including chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, human papillomavirus, genital warts, trichomonas, other vaginal infections, nongonoccal urethritis (NGU), cervicitis, molluscum contagiosum, chancroid, and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). All questions will be answered by H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D. or Edward W Hook, MD.
Fear of HIV exposure
by Im worried, Mar 25, 2006 12:00AM
Doctor,
I am a 19 y/o college student (Male) and I live in Iowa. I was a virgin until almost 7 days ago. I hooked up wiht a girl (unprotected) a dont know very well and am very scared as to risk of exposure. the act was not traditional intercourse. I did nto come inside of her I was simply in a for a few seconds and then pulled out then we finished with oral sex after that had finished i came to find she had been bleeding....before i inserted i had fingered her and i believe that is what started the bleeding....i became very scared as to my risk of exposure to HIV she claims she had a test 1 year ago becuase she had gotten a tattoo..the test was neg...and has only had sex with 2 men since then and claims she used a condom with them. she also siad she had a annual pap smear just recently which was normal and she had seen the doctor about the bleeding. My question centers around if there was blood on my penis and then she gave me oral sex what are the chances of infection from that episode? Also is a normal pap smear a positive fact in the sense that alot of HIV positive women will have abnormal pap smears and infections? Also, not long after the episode i was swabbed for gonhorea and clymidia and the tests were negative...now 7 days after teh episode my anxiety level has decreased alot from what it once was...but i wanted a professional oppionion as to risk of exposure. I have asked her to get an HIV test and she has obliged. and i have an appoinment to get tested in a few weeks which will be approximalty 30 days after my exposure.....also if she tests negative would you even suggest i get tested? she said her last episode was about 6 weeks before we had sex. I have had no symptoms except a little bit of fuzzy vision (which i think is due to sympton hunting on the computer all day) no burring urination or any types of rashes so my thoughts as far as any of those STDs are good but since HIV can be silet it scare me alot. Your thoughts on risk to exposure from this episode would be appreciated.
Thank you Doctor
I am a 19 y/o college student (Male) and I live in Iowa. I was a virgin until almost 7 days ago. I hooked up wiht a girl (unprotected) a dont know very well and am very scared as to risk of exposure. the act was not traditional intercourse. I did nto come inside of her I was simply in a for a few seconds and then pulled out then we finished with oral sex after that had finished i came to find she had been bleeding....before i inserted i had fingered her and i believe that is what started the bleeding....i became very scared as to my risk of exposure to HIV she claims she had a test 1 year ago becuase she had gotten a tattoo..the test was neg...and has only had sex with 2 men since then and claims she used a condom with them. she also siad she had a annual pap smear just recently which was normal and she had seen the doctor about the bleeding. My question centers around if there was blood on my penis and then she gave me oral sex what are the chances of infection from that episode? Also is a normal pap smear a positive fact in the sense that alot of HIV positive women will have abnormal pap smears and infections? Also, not long after the episode i was swabbed for gonhorea and clymidia and the tests were negative...now 7 days after teh episode my anxiety level has decreased alot from what it once was...but i wanted a professional oppionion as to risk of exposure. I have asked her to get an HIV test and she has obliged. and i have an appoinment to get tested in a few weeks which will be approximalty 30 days after my exposure.....also if she tests negative would you even suggest i get tested? she said her last episode was about 6 weeks before we had sex. I have had no symptoms except a little bit of fuzzy vision (which i think is due to sympton hunting on the computer all day) no burring urination or any types of rashes so my thoughts as far as any of those STDs are good but since HIV can be silet it scare me alot. Your thoughts on risk to exposure from this episode would be appreciated.
Thank you Doctor
Doctor's Answer
by H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D., Mar 25, 2006 12:00AM
, Mar 25, 2006 12:00AM
Thanks for posting in a new thread. Sorry I couldn't respond to your several attempts to post your question as a comment in other threads. Because "thread jumping" diverts the discussion, it is unfair to the original questioner.
For what it is worth, in my 30+ years in the STD field, I only saw one patient (back in the 1980s) who was unlucky enough to catch an STD the first time he or she had sex. Most likely you aren't the second. Many young people grow up in today's world with an inflated notion of the STD/HIV risks associated with sex, and it sound like that applies to you. For example, heterosexually transmitted HIV is rare in the US, in the absence of bisexuality, drug use, and certain other high risk situations (which by and large don't apply to college students).
Most important, your risk of catching HIV or any STD probably was very low, based on your lack of typical STD symptoms, your negative test results, and your partner's sexual history. That said, her recent normal pap smear doesn't say much; but if that exam included STD tests in addition to the pap smear itself (as it usually does), then it probably offers still further reassurance that she didn't have anything for you to catch.
My advice is that from a strictly medical perspective, you don't need any further evaluation or testing. However, you would do well to speak with a knowledgeable health care provider about the real risks, safer sex, and the like. Such service probably is available at your institution's student health clinic, which in recent years have become excellent and generally very reliable sources of STD clinical care and prevention advice. Don't be embarrassed about it; trust me, they have heard it all before; and they hear stories more or less like yours all the time.
Bottom line: Relax, seek out reliable information, and don't lose sleep over this event. Good luck-- HHH, MD
PS: There. That was worth the $10 donation, wasn't it?
For what it is worth, in my 30+ years in the STD field, I only saw one patient (back in the 1980s) who was unlucky enough to catch an STD the first time he or she had sex. Most likely you aren't the second. Many young people grow up in today's world with an inflated notion of the STD/HIV risks associated with sex, and it sound like that applies to you. For example, heterosexually transmitted HIV is rare in the US, in the absence of bisexuality, drug use, and certain other high risk situations (which by and large don't apply to college students).
Most important, your risk of catching HIV or any STD probably was very low, based on your lack of typical STD symptoms, your negative test results, and your partner's sexual history. That said, her recent normal pap smear doesn't say much; but if that exam included STD tests in addition to the pap smear itself (as it usually does), then it probably offers still further reassurance that she didn't have anything for you to catch.
My advice is that from a strictly medical perspective, you don't need any further evaluation or testing. However, you would do well to speak with a knowledgeable health care provider about the real risks, safer sex, and the like. Such service probably is available at your institution's student health clinic, which in recent years have become excellent and generally very reliable sources of STD clinical care and prevention advice. Don't be embarrassed about it; trust me, they have heard it all before; and they hear stories more or less like yours all the time.
Bottom line: Relax, seek out reliable information, and don't lose sleep over this event. Good luck-- HHH, MD
PS: There. That was worth the $10 donation, wasn't it?
HHH, MD
-Blake