[Question #735] Still concerned - teeth on condom

106 months ago

Hi Doc,

I am still a little concerned and would appreciate advice on it. My concerns are the following:

1) The CSW used her teeth to open the condom wrapper. Is there a possibility that she tore the condom and it was so small that it did not cause a break but made the condom fail? I didn't see a break when taking it off but now I am worried about micro tears.

2) As I mentioned that condom used in the oral and vagianl was the same, I first had oral and it was a little toothy. I could feel her teeth. Could her teeth have caused small tears and caused the condom to fail without me noticing it. I had vaginal intercourse after that but it was not rough so I didn't really put more stress on the condom.

3) Today I filled a condom with water. I tried to break it with my nails, didn't do any damage. Then I bit into it with my teeth and that did cause small holes (NOT RUPTURES) that leaked. Something I could definitely miss when taking the condom off. Now I know for sure that she didn't bit me during oral or I would have screamed so this is really unrealistic but it puts doubts about "condoms don't have micro tears they break openly". I would appreciate a comment on that doc. However when I applied excessive force to tear it with my nails, it did tear very noticibly with a pop sound. I know this sounds a little crazy, doing all these tests. I had a DUO test done today, I.e 20 days post my encounter, but that was part of my annual health checkup, results are expected in a week.

Thank you for your comments and advice. I will test for sure but want to know if these actions and worries are just unnecessary and uncalled for.

Thanks!

Edward W. Hook M.D.

106 months ago

this is your 4th question in less than a month. Having just read responses to your earlier questions, as Dr. Handsfield has pointed out, it is clear that you are obsessing and overthinking this in a way that is not healthy for you. I will answer these questions but it really is time for you to stopping re-thinking your exposures and to move on. If you cannot do that, additional questions will do you little good and I suggest (urge) you to seek the help and advice of a counselor in moving forward from your unwarranted and misplaced concerns. I say this out of concern only.

As for today's questions:

1.No, this is not a plausible scenario. When condoms fail, they break wide open. If you had had sex with a condom with a small hole it would have enlarged and failed quite obviously by the time you finished.

2. Same response. You should have confidence in the condom. If it did not visibly fail, then it did its job and did not fail.

3. The pressure within a condom with a small hole in it does not mimic the forces that occur when a condom is used for sex. Your test was unrealistic. Again, I urge you to have confidence in the condom.

Your DUO test will be negative. When it is, believe it too. You need to move on. EWH

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106 months ago

Thank you very much for your response. I know this sounds weird but I agree, this is unhealthy. Unfortunately (fortunately too) I recently got in a monogamous relationship that has a very good future so all these concerns are basically fears of me getting HIV and loosing a possibly long term healthy relationship. And I do agree that I need to see someone. I am not sure who I can find in my locality for that. I have a flu that is prolonged probably due to this anxiety.

Two more facts about my encounter to see if your assessment changes and then I will move on.

1. The condom was a different "style" so it was not snug over my shaft, there was quite some room. But it was tight at the base so it was not "large" for me, just a different style. Would that make a difference given that it was not stretched over the shaft that is why it did not "tear" completely?

2. As I mentioned, the vaginal intercourse was not rough at all, was slow and lasted barely for 2 mins. That kind of intercourse is still enough to reveal any tears completely?

I will take your answers and really try to move on. Thanks!

Edward W. Hook M.D.

106 months ago

You are engaging in hypothetical, "what if" questioning which serve no purpose for you. Are you trying to make up unrealistic scenarios so that you can convince yourself that the condom you used did not work. There is NO REASON for you to be worried that the condom did not work. This is silly. You need to move on. EWH

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106 months ago

Even if it was not snug and fit over my shaft? There is this doubt in my mind that condom breaks are ruptures because they are snugly fit over ones shaft and a tear expands because of that tight fit which was not my case. Can you comment please? Everything else I have accepted and convinced myself that they did not put me at risk.

Edward W. Hook M.D.

106 months ago

Repeating the same question with slightly different wording will not change my answer BUT it does indicate your overwhelming anxiety. Your concerns are just not warranted and my answers will not change. You were not at risk.

This is my third and therefore final response to this question. The thread will be closed later today. I hope that you will not continue to worry about this. There is no reason to do so. EWH

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106 months ago

Sorry doc, I'll buy another question but I would really appreciate your input on this, it's a question answered by you. So here is my exact concern:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/HIV---Prevention/Condom-Breakage--worried-about-possible-exposure/amp_show/1612575

That's exactly what I was scared of, something like that. I clearly remember taking my condom off while I was looking at it. But I did not look at it closely to check for something like that. As I explained the condom was Trojan ecstasy so there was quite some room. Escort rooms are a bit dim in terms of lighting so is it possible I missed a cut like that while taking of the condom since the condom was not snug and tight over my shaft? Or is your assessment still the same that any break would be very obvious and hard to miss?

The sex was not at all rough at all.