the iga test is a blood test. it's not a test we use for herpes testing though.
wait 3 or 4 months post encounter for the herpes igg blood test as I previously recommended. should you get a recurrence of symptoms, be seen promptly for exam and lesion culture if they feel it looks like herpes.
grace
Oh I thought that since it would be a new infection I would have to get a swab test, because I wouldn't have antibodies yet?
you don't want a herpes iga test. you want the herpes igg blood test.
grace
Does anyone have any clue on how I can find a place to get an IgA test? The reason I'm asking is the pimple or whatever re-appeared and I can not find a place that does the IgA test only IgG or IgM and I know I would not have the antibodies by now.
you used a condom for sex so you didn't get most std's.
at this point, should you get a return of symptoms, be seen within 48 hours of their appearance. otherwise I'd cover your bases with a herpes igg blood test 3 or 4 months after the last time you had sex with him.
grace
The likely hood that he will get tested is like 2% I have practically begged him and now were at the point we are not friends anymore, so even if he does get tested I would not know the results........
new symptom legs are alternating hurting one leg will hurt for a while then the other will, also i have noticed some itchyness and tingling sensation in my penis though I do not notice any burning sensation when urination.
What are my best plans for testing myself, though I know that the tests will probably show up negative right now. Also should i get a full screen and not just Herpes IgG? Should I wait a few months due to my low budget (I'm still in High School).
So my new question is when and for what should I get tested?
I would like to post up rather quickly. I do stand corrected regarding the viral shedding. As I have learned this information I will modify future advice to help prevent the inaccurate information.
I would also like to apologize to both sadgirl789 and the poster of the question.
assume nothing and get your gardasil shots! They should be covered by insurance now for you since they've been fda approved for males.
let your partner know how important this is for you and how high the rates of infection are in gay males and why it's important for him to get his hsv igg blood test done. he can get the testing done through www.healthcheckusa.com or www.tstd.org if either of them have participating labs near you for about $100. He'd have results back in 48 hours.
grace
I haven't had gardasil shots but i think i already have HPV after reading statistics, He said he isn't getting tested for hsv just HIV, so I don't know what I should do. It wasn't a random hook-up he is a friend. I don't really have any other symptoms though i did wake up with a strange yellowish bruise on my arm doubt thats anything it just freaked me a little bit, though i am clumsy i doubt I wouldn't have noticed it before. Is that any possible STD or am I freaking myself out more?
Any advice on how I can ask him to get tested I've tried just asking him, he said next time he sees the doctor though he doesn't even know when that is.
since you popped the lesion you had, too late for testing on it. since you never had another partner before, odds are it's too early for blood testing to be of any use for you.
your partner probably has never been tested for herpes before. hsv1 and hsv2 infection rates in gay males if very high ( like 60% of them have hsv2 ). Your partner needs to go and be specifically tested for herpes and share his results with you and then we can help you figure out what testing you need done next.
hsv2 increases the risk of contracting hiv quite significantly. you and your partners knowing your hsv2 status as well as your hiv status is very important for your health and theirs. Make sure you are talking about this with partners and if it's a random partner, always put a condom on when the clothes come off.
have you had your gardasil shots yet too?
grace
the virus is not shed from the entire boxer short area. you are correct in that sadgirl. It is shed from the area of active lesions as well as from the anogenital area. the skin on the thighs and buttocks and lower abdominal area is too thick for the virus to shed from without obvious lesions present.
you can have ob's anywhere in the boxer short area but the virus doesn't shed from the entire boxer short area.
make sense mistakeguy?
grace
I disagree with you. The skin is given nerves. Thus the infection which lives in the nerves can in fact travel up there and NOT have signs or symptoms. As well as like Dr. Hook said it can be found in the nerves that are in the skin. Guess you and I will just have to disagree. I am not going to change my thoughts or advice to posters. Remember HSV is not an infection of the skin it is of the nerves. As such our skin has nerves and the virus can travel up those nerves.
Also I would like to say that I do not as a rule of thumb disagree with Grace or any of the experts found on these forums. If you can provide me with active links to which they state otherwise I will be more then happy to review and provide you with the answer (Simliar as I have done here for you.)
In effort to further research this I found one thread that does side with you but investigating the wording does offer possibility into other sites for exposure.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/STDs/Hands--sweat--precum--fingers/show/954521
Dr. HHH Said:
What you "should make of that" is nothing. HSV simply is not transmitted by the sorts of exposure you describe, at least not with measurable frequency. The risk may not be zero, but it's close enough. Although recurrent herpes outbreaks can appear anywhere in the boxer shorts area, asymptomatic viral shedding is pretty much limited to the genitals or anus.
This supports that it majority of the time is limited to the genitals or anus but it is left open for possibility of other sites. I would also like to remind you that this has to my knowledge (and a few hours spent on pubmed.gov to verify this statement) not a lot of studies have been carried out on HSV shedding locations. However, most of the studies that I could find the person was told what locations to swab and the person was not swabbed in each possible location.
While it maybe probabble that thick skin won't be the site of shedding I still believe it is a possibility. Herpes is a very complex virus and states made 4-5 years ago on the expert forums have even changed with the new data being done.
Hi Mistakeguy,
I really don't want to debate this :) However, when I see something that isn't correct given out as medically advice/fact, I just simply can't ignore it.
Yes, HSV can shed without symptoms but NOT in the areas where the skin is thick, like the buttock or thigh. Yes, it most certainly can shed without symptoms in the thinner skinned areas such as the vagina, penis, etc. The thigh or buttock will only shed from an existing lesion.
You might consider reading Terri Warren's book. She clearly outlines this. As well, Grace has stated this numerable times on this site. I think perhaps you are taking Dr Hooks words out of context.
Sadgirl if you wish to debate this you can either post on your current thread or start a new one and I will be happy to comment on it from there.
Posted for you and the poster:
Below see a thread from Dr. Hook 2009 Oct.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/STDs/herpatic-inner-thigh/show/1067541
Post partiaily quoted for you and the poster:
Yoru qeustons are lall based on the concnept that this is HSV.. I doubt the basic premise.
Dr. Hook States:
1. HSV can recur and cause asymptomatic shedding at any site were the nerves which serve the orignal site of infection go. There is a chance that nerves going to parts of the inner thigh also go to the genitals and therefore IF this was HIV, it might lead to transmssion.
LunaP
Those classes are desgined to make you fear sex and that everyone is a walking STD and should you choose to do something outside of marriage that you risk getting STD's far more greater then true. Not every interaction leads to infection as well. Good luck and follow up with us as need be.
Hi Mistakeguy,
Don't mean to beat at dead horse: but I don't think you are right on this. HSV cannot be shed from the thighs, legs, buttock in the absence of a lesion; the skin is far too thick for this. It can only be shed asymtomatically from the thinner skin in the anogenital area, vagina, anus, penis, etc. Dr Terri Warren has even written this in her book, the Good News and the Bad News.
Thanks so much lol. I'm pretty sure most of it is being paranoid, maybe it's because it was my first sexual encounter or something that I thought something must go wrong due to my recent sex-ed abstinence only class.
As you said my plan is to make sure he gets tested though he has other current sex partners, so I have decided to not do anything else sexual with him.
If anything else appears I will go see a doctor about it.
And also with my research I found that certain foods would cause outbreaks to be more severe and it was practically my diet (nuts, raisins, and chocolate) lol. So this is making me feel less and less like i have herpes.
it's been days since the pimple (5) and nothing else has appeared I do have a slight itch but It's not strong and seems just like my clothes are irritating it or sweat, nothing like a painstaking or mild itch.
Though I know it's a possibility that I could have it you have made me feel a lot better thanks!!!!!!!!!!
You took my 3 numbers lol. Anyway, I am glad you asked and yes you an shed the virus form any which place the virus has access to the skin via nerve root. Something you may wish to study over as well is the below journal entry which is a study grace posted in her journal. It doesn't shed all over at the time it sheds but it can shed from different places which is why a condom is not 100% perfect. Also if you review Grace's journal entry you can also find the other postings of condom's protection.
http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/170908/shedding-from-multiple-sites?personal_page_id=2773
LunaP
Have you ever had oral sex? Herpes doesn't just transmit with anal/vaginal contact so it is possible you could have had something else. Generally in the case of condom protected sex your risk is low. Lower then a person who doesn't use a condom. You are correct this information that his partners never broke out is a good theroy there is nothing there. But its not a 100% gurnatee as some people have such a mild outbreak that it is written off as something else.
There is not to my knowlege a defination of what a herpes blister will look like after it pops. Since it is like any other skin abnormality it will eventually heal up and go away following a process that would happen when someone gets a pimple or a skinned knee. The skin has to repair itself.
Your first outbreak is typically the worst as far as pain and symptoms go. As I said above the description doesn't fit a "typical" herpes case. In the sense that there is multiple bumps and they are close to each other. However, each person responds differently and would and could show differently. You don't have a few of the other classical type symptoms as well. Which speaks loudly against it being herpes. You may have had a yeast pustule or something like that. It would have helped if you had shown the bump to your doctor or dermatologist. When I was going through the mess myself I had 2 yeast pustules on my forskin. Scary stuff. Had a dermatologist look it over and poof I was good to go. He popped them both and pus came out.
The bumps should scab over but they may not its a healing process of the skin. If you get a cut it will scab itself until the skin repairs it self (that is why picking at it takes longer for it to heal). You could be causing some pain and some other things because of the checking yourself out.
I will say this I really doubt you are going to have Herpes. Even if you test positive on your HSV test there is no way for sure to know what site you have HSV at unless you do a lesion culture and their is no way to know if it was (unless it is found to be genitally located and you have never had sex of any kind including unprotected oral) this partner.
Not everyone walking is a STD. If your partners last sexual encounter was 12-16 weeks ago have him be tested. If he is negative move on you don't have herpes. If he is positive test in 12-16 weeks. In the mean time play some basketball or soccer. Get your mind off things and you won't look for symptoms.
Also the "pimple" did not scab over. Am I just worrying too much because I tend not to notice the symptoms unless I am actively looking for them, and none of them appeared until i thought i had herpes (I'm a bit of a hypochondriac)
Ultimately thank you for responding.
First this was my first sex partner so its unlikely i would have gotten it from someone else. Second none of his other previous partners have had outbreaks but i do know its possible not to have outbreaks and shed the virus. But it would still be a good sign. Im planning on not having sex and going to get tested in 3 months for everything. I'm going to ask him about his testing, and he is getting tested soon.
After a herpes blister pops what should it look like? because mine is pink/red and still a little bit of a bump but is receding.
Also I have heard that the first outbreak would be really bad, so if these are the first symptoms would it be a lot worse, especially since if i did get herpes it was at most 3 weeks ago?
Hey Mistakeguy,
Are you sure about your facts? I just read Terri Warren's book, The Good News and the Bad News, and she states that HSV is not shed in the entire boxer's shorts area in the absence of a lesion. It only sheds in the ano-genital area (anus, scotum, penis, vagina). The thighs and buttocks do not shed the virus, unless, of course, there is an overt outbreak. The skin is too thick to shed the virus (without an outbreak, of course).
You bring up some good questions and hopefully we can help. First I want you to relax and take a few deep breathes. I know its easier said then done but please lets try to relax.
First of all Herpes doesn't require the person to cum. It is not spread via bodily fluids easy and really only transferred skin-to-skin contact. Unprotected Oral sex is a low risk for herpes even if he had HSV. When he took his test 6 months ago did he have a HSV IgG blood test? Chances are he didn't as it is not commonly run on STD panels. Also did he have 12-16 weeks inbetween his last HSV IgG test and last sexual encounter? Some people don't notice the symptoms of HSV or believe it to be something else.
1. Given the bump could be anything honestly. You should have had a doctor look at it and culture it. If it comes back be seen within 24-48 hours for a lesision culture. If you can't be seen by your normal doctor seek out a local STD clinic. You can call your local health dept. Herpes doesn't typically show with one bump but it could. So we really can't comment on that. Like I said above be seen if it returns and timing is of the essence in dealing with a good culture.
2. Could very well be. Given your skin it is possible. Even with a condom you can irrititate the skin.
3. I will have to defer to your partner. I am not qualified to give any comment on this truly. I will say I believe though that yes you can and could not be used to it therefore it will hurt. Our anus has a lot of nerves in it and it can hurt when activities do happen. I would advise that you do look into more lube on the condom to help with this as well. Again like I said above the no cum doesn't mean anything. In fact also condoms are not a perfect in protection against HSV like it is for HIV. HSV requires skin-to-skin contact. More below about this.
4. I think you have answered your own question. Flu like symptoms such as stiff neck and fever are more likely what we would talk about. But your stress and allergies will get the best of you. The mind can be a powerful force in ones life.
HSV like I said above is transferred skin-to-skin contact. If your partner has Genital HSV he can shed the virius in all of the boxer shorts region. So with that being said remember condoms won't protect every part of the body that may touch you during sexual contact. Also if your partner has HSV orally they can still pass it to you with no signs or symptoms (as can happen to with genital hsv).
It would be best for your partner to if you feel this is herpes to get another IgG blood test if his last sexual contact (outside of you) was in the last 12-16 weeks. This will tell you rather quickly if he has HSV. You won't know the location if he tests positive. Make sure if he does test to use the IgG blood test and not the IgM test. If he doesn't and you would like to test (to know your own HSV status) then request an IgG blood test. Testing positive will not tell you if you have gotten it from this encounter or maybe a previous encounter or the location. I hope this helps.