Shingles from HIV or stress?

[warner5148]

Back in June, I visited a strip club and went to a VIP room. There was mutual masturbation with her hands until I ejaculated while I rubbed the outside of her vagina. My penis was somewhat removed from my pants for a moment, but there was no penetration of her vagina with my fingers or penis. There was kissing and sucking of her breasts. I wouldn't think twice about this but the following happened to me in the days after:

1. A sore in the corner of my mouth developed the next day. On the morning of my strip club visit I shaved off my goatee and previously had similar sores in that particular corner of my mouth where some of the whiskers grow from the point where the corner of my mouth joined to my lips. This sore was not a hard or firm, and it felt like a wet scab. The sore went away in about a week.

2. 3 days afterwards, I felt pain in my bladder and felt the urge to urinate often to relieve that pain in my bladder. This lasted for a few days and went away.

These were the only symptoms that anything might be wrong. Since this encounter, I've had no other symptoms. I haven't been sick at all.

In November, I started to obsess about this encounter and contracting HIV. After obsessing for a few days, I started to feel like my face was hot and red, particularly on one side of my face. I never broke out with a shingles rash, although there were some slight bumps that arose on both cheeks at times. I have noticed a red streak along my jawline since this first started. Even now, my face still feels hot at times and the red streak still present along my jawline. I did have the shingles on this same side of my face (just one blister on my cheek) back almost 10 years ago and have not had the shingles since.

I've read that folks with HIV often are suspectible to shingles outbreaks. Should I be concerned about having HIV?  Did my obsessing awaken the shingles virus without causing the shingles rash to break out?

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

I should have added that your symptoms suggest a bacterial infection of the skin of your face, like staph or strep, which can be triggered by shaving.  The red streak suggests a possibly severe infection that should be treated promply with an antibiotic.  Disregard my comment about seeing a provider "if you are concerned".  You should definitely seek health care right away.

Your urinary symptoms probably are unrelated to any of this.  But if they recur, describe them to the doctor or clinic when you seek care for the face problem.

But still there is no reason to be concerned about HIV.

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

Welcome to the HIV forum.  Reacting first to the title you chose for your question, before reading anything else:  probably neither.  Stress does not trigger shingles, and HIV rarely does.  For every 10,000 people with new episodes of shingles, I'll bet not more than one has HIV and in none is stress the cause.  So perhaps you will find that information alone to be reassuring.

Now I have read the question.  My first comment is that you could not possily have caught HIV from the sexual event you describe.  HIV simply is never transmitted by hand-genital contact, nor by kissing or mouth-skin contact, including contact with breasts.  Never.

Second, the symptoms you describe do not suggest either shingles or HIV.  If you are concerned about your symptoms, see a health care provider about them.  I see no reason to suspect shingles, and based on the exposure history, it is not possible you have HIV (assuming you haven't had other exposures you don't describe).  You don't need HIV testing.

Regards--  HHH, MD