Possible herpes?

[geekypants.livejournal.com]

Hey all...

I haven't had any kind of sexual contact in 18 months. Last November I asked to be tested for all STDs at my annual exam. They tested for chlamydia/etc. at the office and sent me to the hospital lab for blood work. I was told that they would do a blood "screen" at the lab...so I guess my first question is, does that test for everything (HIV, Herpes, etc.)? Both tests came back negative.

About a two weeks ago, I started having neck pains and fever/chills. After a few days, this developed into even worse fever/headache...doctors suspected mono or strep but both tests came back negative. I had to go to the hospital on Friday night to bring down the fever. On Saturday I noticed the inside of my lower right inner labia was a bit swollen...it turns out I have a single, relatively large, white sore there. There doesn't seem to be any redness but it does hurt. Is this herpes? What is happening? I thought I had been cleared for herpes with the blood test...is it even common for a first breakout to occur this long after infection? I am away from home and don't have the means to get to a doctor right away and am nervous.

Thanks for your help!

Comments

[sleep-monger.livejournal.com]

I had almost the exact same situation happen to me when I was 16. The fever, everything. My sore was obviously infected, though. When I went to the ER, they immediately told me it was herpes, although the test was negative. IV antibiotics cleared me up, and I haven't had an incident in the last... oh, 6 years. It was a freak thing. But the fever could mean infection, please get checked out soon!

[geekypants.livejournal.com]

The doctor did put me on antibiotics...luckily the fever has subsided! How long did it take for your sore to heal?

[sleep-monger.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I had big ones, on both sides, and they were way past white, they were so infected. Not to get gross, sorry, but it was SUPER bad, and from what I remember, I was only in the hospital for a few days on the antibiotics. They took a bit to heal because of the size, maybe a few weeks all in all. I can't imagine yours would that amount of time, though.

Good luck!

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[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

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[jennifer0246.livejournal.com]

Without knowing if you tested negative for herpes antibodies in the past, and without knowing specifically what you've got now (i.e. culturing the sore), it's impossible to know. I will say that it sounds like herpes, though a first outbreak does typically happen relatively close to the incident of exposure.

Can you be seen at a Planned Parenthood or other clinic?

[beganwithayes.livejournal.com]

it's actually common for primary outbreaks to occur months or years after exposure. according to this site (http://www.herpesonline.org/articles/genital_herpes.html), herpes is latent in 90% of the people that have it.

[ms-kitsch.livejournal.com]

Though your symptoms do sound like a herpes outbreak, it's my understanding that herpes symptoms emerge about a week after skin-to-skin contact with an infected partner, so having the first symptoms 18 months later would be highly unlikely. Is it possible you could have missed a first (mild) outbreak earlier? Again, seems unlikely, but is possible.

The the above poster suggested, the best thing to do would be to find a Planned Parenthood or other clinic to get the sore cultured. That's the single way to find out for sure what's going on.

Best of luck!

[beganwithayes.livejournal.com]

latency is common.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000857.htm

this is only my personal experience, but i was infected for a year before my primary outbreak.

[ms-kitsch.livejournal.com]

Oh wow, I'm sorry! I had no idea latency was so common.

[sandraivette.livejournal.com]

Herpes isn't detected with a blood test. It's usually detected with visual examination and a swab test of the sore once it has erupted. Have you had your doc check the SORE out? And it usually erupts in clusters.

[abbey4321.livejournal.com]

A blood test can be used to test for herpes antibodies... although these tests often aren't done because they are expensive, most insurance wont cover them, and a very large percentage of the population will test positive for HSV 1.

Also, OP, symptoms for herpes can show up a long time after exposure. I know mine did. Your best bet would be to head to the doctor, have them examine you, and possibly culture the sore. My first outbreak came complete with the flu like symptoms that you are describing.

[sandraivette.livejournal.com]

That's probably why my doc told me otherwise about getting tested for herpes. Thanks!

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

Herpes can be detected with a blood test (http://www.ashastd.org/herpes/herpes_learn_testing.cfm#3), though blood tests can only tell you that the HSV antibodies are present in one's system -- not that a particular lesion is or is not caused by a strain of HSV. If the blood screen mentioned in the OP included herpes (which is not terribly likely -- in the absence of symptoms, HSV is not part of most STI screenings) and if the blood test returned negative results for HSV-1 and HSV-2, that would pretty much rule out HSV as a cause of this particular sore.