Doctor,
I'm a 36 year old male, general good health.
About a week ago I started feeling an itch in my left leg, close to the front of my knee towards the inner side of the thigh. At first it looked like an insect bite: couple of reddish raised "pimples", small, and itchy. I scratched several times, and the skin got irritated in that area. Gradually, other similar bumps started to appear, some of them close to the original one like a cluster and others in isolation on the other side of that same kne and my calf. All very itchy.
The original affected area, got very red, and after a few days it developed blisters. Still itchy there. Now in that original place skin is starting to look somewhat better.
A few other spots have appeared in my other calf and my arms. most of them seem to be following the same course: start as a raised bump then blister. Some have at first a white tip, others a slightly darker one.
In addition to the rash, I have also experienced some stomach discomfort and a little bit of diarrhea for 1 day (this is back to normal now), but no fever that I have been aware of. And of course I have been feeling very stressed about the whole situation.
Now, the HIV connection: about 4 weeks ago I had vaginal intercourse with an escort. Used condom which did not break. Different condom was used each time - 3 in total -. My main concern here is that she supplied the condoms and I did not check if they were Latex which is from what I know the only really safe material.
Hence, my specific questions are:
1. If the condom was not latex, to what extent this was a risk?
2. Does an HIV rash typically itch so much?
3. Does an HIV rash usually develop as blisters and with the general characteristics I have described above?
4. If you don't think this is HIV related, any other possible suggestions?
I'm seeing a dermatologist next week, but in the meantime would appreciate some initial info to help calm my nerves.
Thanks a lot.