[Question #7951] Confused
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50 months ago
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Hello again! Feeling way better now I started counselling, thanks for all the advice given in this time. However I went to my check up with a new family doctor and explained about my worry of anabolic steroids and biotin, the advice was to first leave the steroids get tested immediately and keep testing every year until 5 years had passed to actually rule out hiv infection? Also that a 4th generation test was not enough to conclude a no infection? I could not trust this seem odd to me, thats why I came here to look for re assurance. I was clear with him that my 4th gen test was done 9 months after I had a partner for a year and the multiple insti tests done too, but his opinion didnt change, Hopefully you Docs could give me some clearance on this weird encounter or why the reasons to give this advice to me
Thanks again!
-The not that worried pal
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H. Hunter Handsfield, MD
50 months ago
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This is a very unfortunate combination of circumstances: a person abnormally and irrationally fearful of HIV despite low risk who has a doctor who is absolutely and totally wrong about HIV and the performance of the current blood tests. He is wrong on every single point you state, or you badly misunderstood. I'm glad to hear you "could not trust" him. He may be a fine doctor in most respects, but if you're looking for proper advice in regard to HIV diagnosis and testing, you'll need to find another doctor. Of course I have no idea of the reasons he gave you such advice.
HHH, MD
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50 months ago
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Thanks for the clearance Doctor! Talking about facts now
1.- is hiv that common in straight males?
2.- by reading the forum I had more understanding about immune suppression with steroids, if anything they could delay antibodies but never preventing or stopping the production of antibodies if Actually infected?
3.- how risky is vaginal sex with no protection but no ejaculation if extreme case scenario the male partner is infected?
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H. Hunter Handsfield, MD
50 months ago
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1) HIV is very rare in strictly heterosexual males in the US and western Europe. It is higher in some places, such as southern Africa and among injection drug users.
2) I'm pretty sure I already answered this in your previous threads. There are NO medical conditions or medications known to have any effect on antibody detection with the modern HIV tests. And if that were to actually happen, the antigen component of the test would be positive, so the AgAb (4th generation) tests always would be positive. Also, the theoretical problem with steroids does not apply to anabolic steroids, i.e. those used for muscle maintenance, strength, etc. The problem is strictly with corticosteroids, the kind that can suppress immunity -- which anabolic steroids do not do.
3) The average transmission risk to a female partner in this situation is once for ever 1,000 episodes of unprotected vaginal sex. There are no data on risk with or without ejaculation, but logically the risk would be even lower than this without ejaculation in the vagina.
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50 months ago
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Understood! Thank you!
I had Avamys Fluticasone furoate (nasal spray) for an ear infection for like a week before the test (4th gen) for an ear infection I was told it is an inhaled steroid should I worry? Or is for users that have corticosteroids as a regular medicine?
Thanks again for such great advice
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H. Hunter Handsfield, MD
50 months ago
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How many times must you be told that NO medications OF ANY KIND have any effect on reliability of the HIV AgAb tests??? Even corticosteroids are a theoretical problem with no actual cases that they ever actually interfered with testing.
To repeat what you have been advised previously, the forum does not permit repeated questions on the same topic or exposure. Having had several along these lines, this will have to be your last one; similar new questions from you will be deleted without reply and without refund of the posting fee. This policy is based on compassion, not criticism, and is designed to reduce temptations to keep paying for questions with obvious answers; because experience shows that continued answers tend to prolong users' anxieties; and because such questions have little educational value for other users, one of the forum's main purposes. Thanks for your understanding. I do hope the discussions have been helpful.