[Question #5823] Follow up to my question ,new symptoms

72 months ago

Hi doctor ,I asked you a question 1 month ago (question #5625) ,but I am still paranoid and have strange symptoms. My exposure was broken condom during insertive anal sex with thai sex worker in Denmark. I tested for Hiv,Syphilis ,Hepatitis C and B at 8 weeks ,they were negative ,HIV was 4th generation ,also I got rapid test for HIV at 10th week it was negative. The problem is I never tested for Gonorrhea and Chlamidiya ,I didn't get any symptom like discharge or painful urination ,what worries me now is I have some strange pain in my hands , mostly in my index fingers they hurt pretty bad ,even while I am driving it is painful and I read in internet about reactive arthritis and that Chlamidiya can cause it ,I can't go right now to test for Chlamidiya or Gonorrhea. I want to ask you the following questions :

1) Does this sound like reactive arthritis , pain in hands ,especially in index fingers ?

2)I can get antibiotics here without prescription , what should I take to cure Gonorrhea and Chlamidiya, I am now 10 weeks post exposure by the way ? (I can't go to doctor right now)

3)I am still worrying about HIV and the fact that she is thai and I read about different subtype there ,will my test catch this subtype ? Can I stop worrying about this ,it is really messing with me almost 3 months now.

Sorry if this sounds like anxiety question ,but I have no one to ask right now

Edward W. Hook M.D.

72 months ago

Welcome to the Forum. On this occasion I will be answering your questions. I have reviewed your earlier interaction with Dr. Handsfield and agree with all that he said. You can be confident that you did not acquire HIV or hepatitis C from the events you describe. Unfortunately you did not test for gonorrhea and chlamydia and that is what I would suggest at this time. Chlamydia in particular is far more common than HIV and can be tested for using a simple urine test. I would not support taking antibiotics at this time without know what you might have- to do so will only confuse things going forward and results of tests performed for gonorrhea and chlamydia at this time will be both reliable and should be available within a few days of testing. Regarding your specific questions:

1) Does this sound like reactive arthritis , pain in hands ,especially in index fingers ?

Reactive arthritis can be a complication of chlamydia infection, as well as a number of other causes. I would suggest however that your arthritis and your risk for chlamydial infections are separate issues and should each be evaluated separately. As I said above, a urine test for chlamydial infection can be done quite easily and your own regular doctor can evaluate the arthritis. In each case, I would again urge you to seek medical advice rather than trying to manage these problems yourself since self-treatment all too often complicates further management if your own therapy is not successful

2)I can get antibiotics here without prescription , what should I take to cure Gonorrhea and Chlamidiya, I am now 10 weeks post exposure by the way ? (I can't go to doctor right now)

NO! See comments above

The HIV tests you had would cover all Thai HIV subtypes. I urge you to accept and believe your test results.

Hope that these comments are helpful. EWH

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72 months ago

Thank you for the reply doctor ,I found doctor and he took urine simple now and will tell me next week results ,but he told in absence of urethral symptoms chances are low for STI infection , do you agree with that ? Also he told me to test for HIV and Syphilis and that I have to retest again at 3 and 6 months ,which is not something I wanted to hear , I still can't sleep from HIV worry and I want to ask you one more time ,do you think my tests are good enough ? Also I want to ask you ,this strange pain in my hands started 1 week ago and I tested yesterday with rapid test ,if this symptoms were due to HIV would my rapid test be positive ? Sorry about this questions ,but I am really freaked out since this incident ,almost lost my job and dropped out of school ,it was my last year and I couldn't concentrate to study for exams and want really to move on from this ,but every little pain or itch in my body and I think about HIV and wake up in a sweat ,it is really dark time for me and I can't talk with anyone about this.

Edward W. Hook M.D.

72 months ago

Thanks for your follow-up and additional information. I'm glad you tested and suspect that your test results will be negative- when they are, the results will be conclusive and should be believed. The doctor is correct that over 90% of gonorrhea is symptomatic but only about 50% of chlamydial infections are symptomatic. Thus testing is a good idea and should relieve any anxiety you have.

Your doctor is mistaken about your HIV and syphilis tests- your results are conclusive and you do not need to be tested. And yes, if your arthritis pain were due to HIV, your test would be positive. Please believe your test results- they are conclusive. Current HIV tests, such as the ones you were tested with are amongst the most reliable tests in all of medicine. EWH

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72 months ago

Hi doctor ,last question ,my PCR came back negative for Gonorrhea and Chlamidiya ,also he made 4th generation HIV also came back negative at 10 weeks (doctor insisted on it) ,I have couple of questions for you. I can stop worrying about HIV with negative duo at 10 weeks finally ,right ?I can Forget about subtypes ,late seroconverion and all that staff ? It is written on the lab result ,that it is 4th Gen HIV ELISA Method Evolis , do you know about this Evolis method ,is it reliable and it will catch all subtypes ? I had also at 8 weeks Hep B ,Hep C and Syphilis tests and came back negative ,do you think they are conclusive ?
I really want to move on from this and I will do my best to do it.
Thank you and all the best to you.

Edward W. Hook M.D.

72 months ago

This question is repetitive and was already asked. your results are definitive and should be believe. Any concerns regarding subtypes, late seroconversion, etc. is a manifestation of internet-fueled misinformation and is unnecessary. All of your test results are conclusive. You need to move on. One way to accomplish that is to stay off the internet and believe your test results.

This is my 3rd and therefore final reply as part of this thread. Future questions regarding this exposure, test results. etc. may be deleted without a response and without return of your posting fee. EWH

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