Lots of Herpes Symptoms? Need Guidance...

[WorriedSick512]

29 yr M. Last HSV test was LONG time ago. hsv1+, but hsv2-.7 days ago-Unpro sex w/ good F friend.Couldn't tell if there were HSV signs & now too scared to ask. 5.5 days ago-Only received unpro oral from diff girl.No visible signs of cold sores.I played w/ her "down there" & adjusted “me”, but can't remember if it was directly after (possibly hand to penis exposure to myself?).2.5 days ago (Tue) til now (Fri).Neck glands started swelling.Now, L is swollen & R, not-so-much.No groin gland swelling.Headaches since Wed & not sure if they are symptom of HSV or Stress induced. No fever thru Thur (96.7-97.1 those nights) but around 98.2 today (1^ warmer). Some urinary discomfort. As for blisters?I think everything down there is HSV.Thought I saw 1HSV blister w/ fluid just under the head of the penis, but doctor swabbed and said 50-50 chance b/c it may have been a pimple.On back penis shaft- some red marks & what COULD have been a Herpe crator, but said that it shouldn't have healed over that fast (perhaps there from b4?) Got blood test for HSV-2 (should take 1 week). He said 50-50 chance, but typically, most "initial" outbreaks are more severe.
I can account for H-aches from stress.But can't account for swollen neck glands b/c I don't have a runny nose or sore throat.Temp’s rising & my fear is I'm only at day 7 & could be headed for worse territory. Could I have gone to doc too early?Will blood test after 6-7 days give an accurate result to include last 2 exposures?Do I need to go back?Could there be any other explanation or STD as to why I have these h-aches(rotates: temple, ear base of skull),swollen glands(neck only)& rising so soon?  If I had HSV1 before but never had cold sores,could F who gave me oral, given me GHSV1 & would I be experiencing these systems b/c of it?Could I have gotten HSV2 from friend on Fri night & I'm a few days from getting the true GHSV2 outbreak? Could I have HAD something gen & just experiencing a relapse?Would symptoms all be relapse related?

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

There are too many jumbled questions in there for me to fully understand all the issues.  But the most important facts are that receiving oral sex is low risk (but not zero risk) for herpes due to HSV-1, and truly zero risk for HSV-2.  But if your doctor saw a lesion that warranted herpes testing, that has to be considered a possibility -- but if he suspected it might just be a pimple, that's also a good bet.  In any case, none of your other symptoms suggest herpes.

The tone of your question suggests an unwarranted level of anxiety, probably over nothing.  I have no patience with being "too scared to ask" a partner whether she might have herpes.  Just give her a call and tell her your concerns.  Otherwise, continue to follow up with your doctor about the herpes test results.  If the diagnosis remains unclear after a few weeks and the culture test is negative, a blood test can sort out whether you might be infected.

Finally, if you do have HSV-1 (genital or oral), it is more likely that you had it all along, not a new infection from your recent sexual exposure.  But this too is a question for your own doctor.  But I repeat that most of your symptoms clearly are not due to herpes.  Anxiety seems a good get as the main explanation.

Good luck---  HHH, MD

[WorriedSick512]

Sorry, I was trying to fit everything under the character limit. Let me try again:

1. If I didn't have genital HSV-1 or 2 before this past weekend, it appears that I could have got it from either the vaginal sex or the oral.  But if I had HSV-1 orally, it would seem more likely to have got it from the vaginal sex, correct? So shouldn't she be having symptoms/an outbreak right now?

2. The severely swollen neck glands seem too coincidental to happen on their own especially 3-5 days after unprotected sexual contact. With no other flu-like symptoms it appears to be from some sort of virus. Safe assumption?

3. If I did have a genital HSV before, could these symptoms be related to a relapse? Or do relapses just come with the rash and blisters?

4. When do you typically see blisters form from the first infection?  I know 2-20 days is the "safe time," but with the general symptoms present, shouldn't they already be occurring? Or should I be on the lookout for more?

5. If I've already had it genitally, does it seem too coincidental that 3-5 days after both exposures, I start getting the general symptoms?

Doubt it matters, but I still have the swollen neck glands this morning and general yucky feeling with a little headache.  

I didn’t have to room to say it before, but your website is a God-send.  Thanks for dedicating part of your life to trying to ease the pain in ours.

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

Thanks for the clarifications.  However, they don't change my basic opinions and advice.  Coincidence is a far more likely explanation than a causal relationship between your sexual encounter and your symptoms.  Look at it this way:  there are millions of first-time sexual exposures between new partners every few weeks, and probably hundreds of thousands of people in the US get the sort of symptoms you describe over several weeksl.  It stands to reason that there are thousands of people in whom those things both happen, simply by random chance.

1) Presence of absence of symptoms in your partner doesn't mean anything.  Most HSV transmissions occur from people who have no symptoms at the time.

2) See above. Also, HSV only causes such symptoms along with overt, open blisters and sores.  Swollen lymph nodes and fever without sores are unlikely to be due herpes.  And you certainly can't get genital herpes but have lymph node enlargement in the neck.

3) Already answered above.  If your genital symptoms are due to herpes, it indeed is likely you had it before the recent exposure.

4) As I said above, if your systemic symptoms were due to herpes, you would also have blisters/sores.

5) Having sex doesn't trigger outbreaks in chronically infected people.  See my comments above about coincidences.

Thanks for the thanks about the forum.

[WorriedSick512]

Ok promise, last post (I really feel like I need to donate more so just tell me how much)... :)

I THINK I am HSV1+ (I had an HSV test a couple years ago and I THINK I remember the nurse saying that, but I could remember wrong...thinking about it tho, I've never had a cold sore). The fact that I've never had ones is scaring me to think I may have been HSV-1 neg before this past weekend (on the flip side, I've been sexually active for 13 years, so odds are I got it somewhere along the way and just never showed symptoms, right?).  

Also, the doctor started me on Valtrex on Friday, just in case.  With a calmer and more level head, I don't think what the doc saw on Friday were HSV sores. I'm really nervous that I'm way before the window where I'd see the sores and taking the Valtrex won't give me the "obvious" initial Herpes outbreak.  But I still have the other symptoms of swollen neck glands and (now this morning, 6 days after) swollen groin glands, mild headaches, a bit of burning when I pee, lower back