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HSV-2 Equivocal 0.94
Hey doc thanks for your time.
I am trying to protect a GF, 3 weeks ago I kissed and fondled another woman, and had about 5-10 seconds of mutual oral sex. I know it is a very low risk event. At the 1 week mark I got tested for Chlamydia & Gonorrhea which was negative, and HSV-1 and 2 which the testing center said, "negative," but no number result was given. After about 10 days, I got a sore-like thing on my upper lip and freaked out, and I took Valtrex right away for 2 days, and it went away within half an hour upon first taking the Valtrex. I did not have a fever, nor any other blisters or sores thereafter. As far as I knew at that point, I was both HSV-1 and HSV-2 negative. Anyway, I got tested for everything at the 3 week mark again and got 0.94 on the HSV-2 test, which is of course equivocal, and I got negative for everything else. I have not received any sores / irregularities down below, or any other sores on my mouth since that event at 10 days. What do you make of this? Is it a false positive, or at 3 weeks could I have oral HSV-2 and the antibodies are in the process of developing? What is the realistic probability I got oral-to-oral HSV-2, or genital-to-oral HSV-2 with ~5-10 seconds of performing oral sex? I know I should probably test again in 3-4 weeks. Thanks.
I am trying to protect a GF, 3 weeks ago I kissed and fondled another woman, and had about 5-10 seconds of mutual oral sex. I know it is a very low risk event. At the 1 week mark I got tested for Chlamydia & Gonorrhea which was negative, and HSV-1 and 2 which the testing center said, "negative," but no number result was given. After about 10 days, I got a sore-like thing on my upper lip and freaked out, and I took Valtrex right away for 2 days, and it went away within half an hour upon first taking the Valtrex. I did not have a fever, nor any other blisters or sores thereafter. As far as I knew at that point, I was both HSV-1 and HSV-2 negative. Anyway, I got tested for everything at the 3 week mark again and got 0.94 on the HSV-2 test, which is of course equivocal, and I got negative for everything else. I have not received any sores / irregularities down below, or any other sores on my mouth since that event at 10 days. What do you make of this? Is it a false positive, or at 3 weeks could I have oral HSV-2 and the antibodies are in the process of developing? What is the realistic probability I got oral-to-oral HSV-2, or genital-to-oral HSV-2 with ~5-10 seconds of performing oral sex? I know I should probably test again in 3-4 weeks. Thanks.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome to the forum.
Almost certainly you do not have HSV-2. First, the supposedly equivocal HSV-2 blood test result really is negative for practical purposes. For more details on this, see the thread linked below. It's a few years old, but the information still is accurate.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/STDs/IGG-Test-Result-Confusion/show/593272
As for the exposure you describe, it was not merely low risk for HSV-2; it was zero risk for practial purposes. HSV-2 is not spread by kissing or by hand-genital contact, and rarely by oral sex. You should not have been tested for HSV-2 on account of that exposure, and I'm afraid you're now suffering the common consequence that the blood tests often give false or misleading results.
As for the "sore-like thing" on your lip, it obviously was not herpes. No herpes lesion can clear up in less than a week, and certainly not in half and hour. Valacyclovir (Valtrex) speeds healing of herpes lesions, but it still takes a few days to have any visible effect.
Having said that, since you have started down the path of HSV-2 testing, I recommend you follow up with another test in a few weeks. Most likely it will be definitely negative, with an ELISA value under 0.9. If so, you can definitely forget herpes.
So feel free to return to let me know the result, if you have a follow-up test. In the meantime, do not take any more valacyclovir, which can interfere with accurate testing; and do your best not to worry. There is no realistic chance you caught HSV-2 from the events you have described.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
Almost certainly you do not have HSV-2. First, the supposedly equivocal HSV-2 blood test result really is negative for practical purposes. For more details on this, see the thread linked below. It's a few years old, but the information still is accurate.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/STDs/IGG-Test-Result-Confusion/show/593272
As for the exposure you describe, it was not merely low risk for HSV-2; it was zero risk for practial purposes. HSV-2 is not spread by kissing or by hand-genital contact, and rarely by oral sex. You should not have been tested for HSV-2 on account of that exposure, and I'm afraid you're now suffering the common consequence that the blood tests often give false or misleading results.
As for the "sore-like thing" on your lip, it obviously was not herpes. No herpes lesion can clear up in less than a week, and certainly not in half and hour. Valacyclovir (Valtrex) speeds healing of herpes lesions, but it still takes a few days to have any visible effect.
Having said that, since you have started down the path of HSV-2 testing, I recommend you follow up with another test in a few weeks. Most likely it will be definitely negative, with an ELISA value under 0.9. If so, you can definitely forget herpes.
So feel free to return to let me know the result, if you have a follow-up test. In the meantime, do not take any more valacyclovir, which can interfere with accurate testing; and do your best not to worry. There is no realistic chance you caught HSV-2 from the events you have described.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
thanks doc, I will follow up with new test results in a few weeks. thanks again
You are reading content posted in the STDs Forum
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
