Low Positive Herpes IGG - WB Neg Testing Update

[GDHerpesHelp]

Hoping I can finally put all of this behind me with some feedback from the community.  Summary:  Brief one time sexual encounter, condom fell off, unprotected sex for short time.  Healthy 37 YO male, sex with a female:

- Day 8 positive IGG for HSV II 2.67 (neg for HSV I)
- Day 11 retest IGG for HSV II 3.01 (neg for HSV I)
- Day 17 WB neg for HSV I & II
- Week 10 IGG for HSV II 1.99
- 3 months WB neg for HSV I & II

Seems like IGG numbers are too high and too early for a positive test so soon after exposure.  No exposures in 6-8 months prior.  No symptoms or lesions and I was checking on a daily basis.  Neg WB at 17 days confirms not a prior infection.  Would be a primary infection.  Decreasing IGG numbers at 10 weeks.  Would expect IGG number to increase if a new primary infection.  WB at 3 months neg for HSV I & II.  If I seroconverted that fast with new primary, the WB should have also detected at the 3 month point.  I want to move on with my life and believe it was a false positive and something in my body was reacting with the IGG Herpes select test.

[GDHerpesHelp]

Bigtimeworried, thank you for the feedback, but that is very different information then I have received both from the UW virology clinic and Terri Warren.  I called and talked to the UW clinic today and they said I should feel confident with the negative results at 12-13 weeks, especially with no symptoms or lesions.  They said if I had seroconverted via the IGG test I would have converted via the WB.  The WB looks at the same antibodies as the IGG as well as many others.  My test would have at least been indeterminate if the IGG wasn't a false positive.  Terri Warren said my WB at this time would be more than 95%.  If I had read the information on this site prior to my initial test I would not have gotten tested at all from a single exposure with no symptoms.  This has been a testing nightmare, but I feel confident I can put the IGG results behind me as false positive since the WB wasn't positive or indeterminate which it would have been if the IGG test was accurate and I had already seroconverted.  This has been a nightmare for me and the stress that has been caused.  I am also comforted by the fact that I true initial infection should have had increasing IGG levels from 8 days to 10 weeks not declining.  

I appreciate your help and opinions, but I am tired of dealing with this and the entire testing system and ready to move on with my life.  A single brief exposure with a female, no symptoms, a 2.67 IGG after 8 days which no one has heard of or thinks is possible, 2 negative WB's and continued low IGG numbers with a primary HSV 2 infection.  I think if Dr. Handsfield was still on the site he would say the chances of 1 in millions of a late seroconversion.  The people at the UW said a healthy person with no auto immune problems should take the testing I did as definitive!

Happy New Year.  Why are the doctors not taking questions on the site any more????

[Bigtimeworried55]

University of Washington states the WB should be conducted at 6 months post exposure for the most accurate of results.

Your 3 month test would be comforting and I doubt the WB result would change in another 3 months if negative at 17 days as well.  I know the WB is not a cheap test but I would retest at 6 months from your most recent exposure to rule out herpes completely from that specific situation.

I don't know why you are showing positives on a standard IGG and I agree that would concern me personally greatly as well. However, a positive result here after 8 days is way too soon making me believe this is a true false positive, especially since the WB eliminates that possibility from prior exposures with a negative result.

I think overall this is a false positive situation, but knowing my direct conversations with the University of Washington, I wanted to ensure you are aware they state the WB for its highest accuracy should be done at 6 months.

[GDHerpesHelp]

Thank you for the response! I really appreciate it and am very relieved.  Scary that the online testing companies don't know more about the testing issues especially with low positive results.  This is a great site!  And the people that are here helping others like you are fantastic!  Thank you!  It was a very difficult time waiting for additional testing.  I am still having some mental issues from the false positive test results, but I am getting better every day.  Scary that they don't know what causes the false positives.