Doctor,
I’m a 34yr male. In Mar/Apr 2009 I spent 5 weeks in Brazil (Rio). During my stay in Brazil i got careless and made some stupid choices that have affected me ever since. I had protected vaginal sex with female prostitutes several times and received unprotected oral sex from two of the girls.
One evening after drinking too much i recalled the following morning that a condom was not used. There was no ejaculation and i doubt it went on for very long. The next day i spoke to her about it and she assured me she was clean. Initially i put this behind me as a stupid mistake. Then after leaving Brazil realization of what happened set in and I decided it was prudent to get tested for everything while i was in the US.
I had decided at this time also to get back together with my girlfriend and i needed to know for her sake.
As i am constantly travelling, mostly in non-english speaking countries, finding the time and place to get tested was difficult. This being the case i decided to go for a PCR test at 31 days after exposure. The test was done by Quest Diagnostics. I took the test and everything came back negative.
I have read all the threads here on here regarding PCR tests, but it seemed to suit someone in my situation as had i waited for the antibody test i would've been in Russia and getting a test there seemed impossible.
Its now 18mths after my Rio experience and i am still stressed. I feel generally healthy, however i do have some symptoms which worry me, namely; Redish spots on my forehead, occasional dry mouth, mild dandruff in scalp and eyebrows, toe nail fungus and occasional mouth ulcers (3-4 in the past 18 months). Today i was also told that i have dermatitis in my ear. My girlfriend has also been diagnosed with Hypothyroidism recently.
All these things combined have me in a mess.
Is a PCR test after 31 days is conclusive? What are the odds the PCR test missed it? Is Hypothyroidism a symptom of HIV or can it be triggered by HIV??