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STDs (Expert Forum)
few questons about syphilis,worried i have HIV
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.
few questons about syphilis,worried i have HIV
by worried_sick22, Jan 14, 2007 12:00AM
female, 22 years old college student, lexington, ky, 4 sexual partners. im afraid i have come in contact with syphilis from a guy i dated 15 months ago. (i just want to state that i havnt had sex with anyone since him) we dated 3 months and broke up a year ago. about a month after we started dating i got a yeast infection, lasted a week. almost exactly after we stopped dating i got what i thought to be a chronic yeast infection. it lasted more than a month but finally went away, although i never experienced cottage cheese discharge, i still figured it to be the yeast. i have never had any open sores that i know of (i might have inside me) and he didnt have any either. im such a hypochondriac that every little change in my body im on google.com doing all kinds of medical reading to figure out what ailment i have and if im expected to live. i also never experienced a rash of any kind, i would have noticed any skin change.
The reason i think that i have come in contact with syph/HIV is b/c the other day the guy that i dated (we work together still) commented in a not-so-jokingly mannor that i gave in syphilis (even though i know i didnt give it to him, i have been tested before him). i was too shocked to say anything even though we are friends. when i got home i got online to look at the symptoms of syphilis. after doing some research on syphlis i am now convinced i have contracted HIV in the process since the two are linked AND i live in a southern state AND also b/c both are rare. HIV/syph is also on the rise in women of child bearing age. i also think that my bad yeast infection could be due to HIV since some women get them really bad when they are infected. i have worried myself SICK over this and yes i have made an appointment to get tested but until then all i do is google everything i can about HIV/AIDS, syphilis, statisitics on the two and how they are linked, pictures ect. the only symptoms i had was i got a few bumps about 7 months ago (about 6 months after we broke up, 9 months after we started dating). they were pimple like and they had a hole in them and they itched, lasted about a month (although i do recall seeing one or two that were the typical waxy bumps). i am pretty much convinced those bumps are due to secondary syphilis. i feel that i have never been healthier, havnt been sick in years and i would have remembered getting the typical flu-like symptoms, even though i know alot of people dont get those. i will speak to him about it in the next few days.i was just wondering if i have syphilis do i have HIV also?what are the odds? could he have gotten syphilis from a girl but not have gotten HIV since its easier to catch the HIV. i also feel like if he had the syph, then he would have gotten the HIV test and he most def would have told me about the HIV by now. to my knowlege, him or his previous X's and his current (i am good friends with 2 X's and the current g/f) have not put themselves at high risk for HIV but anyone can get it
The reason i think that i have come in contact with syph/HIV is b/c the other day the guy that i dated (we work together still) commented in a not-so-jokingly mannor that i gave in syphilis (even though i know i didnt give it to him, i have been tested before him). i was too shocked to say anything even though we are friends. when i got home i got online to look at the symptoms of syphilis. after doing some research on syphlis i am now convinced i have contracted HIV in the process since the two are linked AND i live in a southern state AND also b/c both are rare. HIV/syph is also on the rise in women of child bearing age. i also think that my bad yeast infection could be due to HIV since some women get them really bad when they are infected. i have worried myself SICK over this and yes i have made an appointment to get tested but until then all i do is google everything i can about HIV/AIDS, syphilis, statisitics on the two and how they are linked, pictures ect. the only symptoms i had was i got a few bumps about 7 months ago (about 6 months after we broke up, 9 months after we started dating). they were pimple like and they had a hole in them and they itched, lasted about a month (although i do recall seeing one or two that were the typical waxy bumps). i am pretty much convinced those bumps are due to secondary syphilis. i feel that i have never been healthier, havnt been sick in years and i would have remembered getting the typical flu-like symptoms, even though i know alot of people dont get those. i will speak to him about it in the next few days.i was just wondering if i have syphilis do i have HIV also?what are the odds? could he have gotten syphilis from a girl but not have gotten HIV since its easier to catch the HIV. i also feel like if he had the syph, then he would have gotten the HIV test and he most def would have told me about the HIV by now. to my knowlege, him or his previous X's and his current (i am good friends with 2 X's and the current g/f) have not put themselves at high risk for HIV but anyone can get it
Doctor's Answer
by H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D., Jan 14, 2007 12:00AM
, Jan 14, 2007 12:00AM
Your friend's comment was insensitive, inappropriate, and overtly offensiive. But still, probably meant as a (cruel) joke. (I'll be alcohol was involved!) If he had been diagnosed with either syphilis or HIV, you can be pretty sure he or the health department would have contacted you long before now. As you say yourself, probably he would have called you himself, unless he is a total troglodyte.
In any case, syphilis and heterosexually transmitted HIV are very rare on college campuses; there are exceptions, but still rare almost everywhere. Your symptoms don't really sound like either one.
But of course the answer doesn't lie with my judgment or your fearful speculation: G0 GET TESTED! Indeed, it is hard for me to imagine why you have't already done that! Visit your student health center. Trust me, they won't be shocked and will keep the information confidential. They have seen it all! Or visit your local health department STD clinic for expert, highly confidential care. You can count on the results of both your HIV and syphilis tests being negative. While you're there, get checked for the other common STDs, like gonorrhea and chlamydia; and exam of those genital bumps (warts??); and a pap test if not done recently.
Because speculation is useless, please no "yes but" or "what if" questions. I won't have any further responses, unless and until you come back to tell us your test results.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
In any case, syphilis and heterosexually transmitted HIV are very rare on college campuses; there are exceptions, but still rare almost everywhere. Your symptoms don't really sound like either one.
But of course the answer doesn't lie with my judgment or your fearful speculation: G0 GET TESTED! Indeed, it is hard for me to imagine why you have't already done that! Visit your student health center. Trust me, they won't be shocked and will keep the information confidential. They have seen it all! Or visit your local health department STD clinic for expert, highly confidential care. You can count on the results of both your HIV and syphilis tests being negative. While you're there, get checked for the other common STDs, like gonorrhea and chlamydia; and exam of those genital bumps (warts??); and a pap test if not done recently.
Because speculation is useless, please no "yes but" or "what if" questions. I won't have any further responses, unless and until you come back to tell us your test results.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
Member Comments (3)
by worried_sick22, Jan 14, 2007 12:00AM
thanks doc, i appreciate the fast feedback. i will get tested.
by worried_sick22, Feb 02, 2007 12:00AM
i finally got my results back today. the doctor called me and said she needed to ask me a question, i felt for sure she was going to ask me to come in again so they could tell me (b/c of course i thought the worst). i called her back and she informed me that my results were negative for hiv/syph and that she wanted to prescribe me some yeast medicine. so im really thankful. i learned alot from this site though. even though i have only had very few partners, i now realize more than anything that it doesnt matter how many partners you have had, it only takes once. i will be using protection everytime as well as my partner's up-to-date STD tests. thanks alot!
by redpat, Sep 04, 2009 07:01AM
A related discussion, Tertiary Syphilis was started.
