[Question #12325] Protected oral

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8 months ago
Docs,
I’ve had protected oral about a week and a half ago. I noticed later that afternoon, I have some pain kind of behind my left testicle. It’s not terrible and seems to hurt more when I move the testicle the right way. I’ve had this pain now for a week. I went to urgent care today and they did urinalysis and it was all completely normal. The PA mentioned epeditnitus or something and said that that is an infection of something surrounding the testicle. She did not feel like that’s what I had but prescribed me doxycycline in case the pain got worse. My question is, should I be concerned with Gonoreah or any other STI? Would you recommend any further testing? I should also mention, the person licked my scrotum and may have gotten saliva on the head of penis for 2 seconds before I put the condom on. Thank you, just nervous about engaging in regular sexual relations with my wife. 
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H. Hunter Handsfield, MD
8 months ago
Welcome back, but this is going to have to be your last question along these lines. This is your seventh, and in some of the others both I and Dr. Hook discussed your anxieties and to your continued worry about HIV or STD risks despite obviously zero risk (or near zero) exposures. You also need to stop attributing every new twitch or tingle or other symptoms to STDs or HIV.

Oral sex is low risk even without a condom, and no STD is possible via condom protected oral sex. And licking intact skin anywhere on the body, including the scrotum, is no risk for any STD; saliva rarely if ever transmits STDs and there also was no risk even if some saliva contacted you meatus (urethral opening). And no STD is a possible cause of symptoms like yours. Epididymitis can be due to gonorrhea or chlamydia, but the mild pain you describe doesn't fit. Also, neither epididymitis nor any other infection can start to cause symptoms the same day as exposure; 24-36 hours is the minimum time required. The main cause of mild or vague testicular pain is genitally focused anxiety -- i.e. worry or anxiety (for example, over a regretted sexual decision) magnifying minor symptoms or even normal body sensations that otherwise you would ignore or not even notice.

Presumably a urethral swab specimen or urine were sent for gonorrhea/chlamydia testing, right? If positive, it would have to be from some previous exposure (even from your wife?) and not from the condom protected oral event. Certainly no more testing of any kind is needed, and I rather strongly disagree with the PA who agreed to treat you with doxycycline. You can safely continue sex with your wife without worry.

Let me know if anything isn't clear.

HHH, MD
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8 months ago
Thank you Doc,
No I wasn’t tested for any STI. She just did a urine test because I am currently having this mild pain behind my one testical. If I had any bacterial STI, such as the ones discussed, and had the symptom I’ve described, what is the likelihood I would have a completely normal urine test? In other words, without testing specifically for the STI, can I just take confidence in the fact that my urinalysis was completely normal? 
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H. Hunter Handsfield, MD
8 months ago
Urinalysis is often entirely normal in people with gonorrhea, chlamydia or other STDs. You can take confidence in the absence of risk from such an exposure, but the urinalysis doesn't mean anything one way or the other.---
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8 months ago
Ok, and if it were gonorea, I’m assuming I’d have some discharge and painful urination etc, some other symptoms other than pain behind one of my testicles? Is the testicular pain often seen in patients with a positive bacterial STI or no? 
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H. Hunter Handsfield, MD
8 months ago
Correct about gonorrhea:  non-symptomatic urethral infections are possible but very rare, and chlamydia is virtually no risk at all from oral sex, even without condom protection. Testicular pain is not a common symptom for STIs limited to the urethra.

You might google chronic pelvic pain syndrome, for which testicular discomfort is a common symptom. Last time I looked, the Wikipedia entry was very good; also see information from the Stanford University dept of urology. As you'll see, it closely related to the concept of genitally focused anxiety.

That concludes this thread. Best wishes and stay safe.
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