POZ Community Forums
HIV Prevention and Testing => Do I Have HIV? => Topic started by: chri3025 on February 26, 2013, 09:43:05 am
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Hi,
I am concerned that I may have been exposed to HIV. I had receptive anal intercourse with a man of unknown status in Moscow Russia, on Saturday evening. We used a condom. He ejaculated inside of me. When he took his penis out of me, the condom did not have any obvious sign of breakage, though I did not examine it closely.
When I returned home I noticed a feeling of liquid in my ass, and 'leakage' on my underwear. (I'm sorry to be graphic). The liquid smelt and tasted a bit like cum, but I cannot be certain.
Worried- I contacted the man. He was angry, said the condom did not break, and that he was healthy. But I barely know him so I cannot be certain he is telling the truth.
Concerned- I went to the Doctor the next day, and he prescribed me Combivir, taken once a day. I took one pill on Sunday, and deciding that I wanted western healthcare flew back to the UK on monday morning.
I went to a sexual health clinic on monday morning, and received PEP treatment consisting of Truvada and Kaletra. I started taking it at 11:00 am. (I tested negative for HIV prior to being given the prescription).
I want to know, based on your expertise, how risky my sexual contact was, and, if I have started PEP too late, and how effective PEP is in this type of case.
Thank you in advance.
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Hi Chri . You never had a risk because the sex was protected intercourse and I'm perplexed as to why your doctor thinks you need PEP .
Its up to you to decide if you want to keep taking PEP but you never had a risk for HIV to begin with .
As long as you make sure condoms are being used for intercourse, you can fully expect your routine HIV tests to return with negative results .
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To add to Jeff's comment. Had the condom failed, you would have known without a doubt.
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Thanks Jeff and RapidRod for your replies. I really appreciate your kind input.
If the condom did not fail, what might have caused the wet 'leakage' I described in my post?
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Thanks Jeff and RapidRod for your replies. I really appreciate your kind input.
If the condom did not fail, what might have caused the wet 'leakage' I described in my post?
The lube and your own body's secretions are a perfect explanation .
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Thanks Jeff. Is PEP dangerous to take?
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Why on earth would you take it and you haven't had an exposure?
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Thanks Jeff. Is PEP dangerous to take?
I'm not saying its dangerous but if you read the insert that comes with any prescription medication you will see almost all medcations have warnings of potential harmful side effects as well as PEP is really expensive . If I were HIV negative and needed PEP I wouldn't hesitate to take it .
My comments were that the description you gave isn't a risk for HIV but its up to you if you want to keep taking PEP for a no risk situation .
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Thanks Jeff. Is PEP dangerous to take?
Your regimen might not be dangerous, exactly, but it's likely to be really uncomfortable. And a shame that you will endure the probable raging diarrhea when you absolutely had no risk for HIV in the first place.
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I have a question about the effectiveness of PEP.
I might have been exposed to HIV on Saturday night due to a possible condom break. If there was an exposure it must have happened at about 10:45 pm.
I went to a doctor the next day and started taking combivir at around 1 pm.
I flew back to the UK and changed PEP regime to Truvada and Kaletra, and started taking that on Monday at around 12 pm.
Did I start too late, and what is the effect of changing drugs? Would combivir have helped anyway?
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There are no such thing as a possible condom break. Either the condom failed or it did not.
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Hi Chri . I'm wondering why you didn't mention your condom break in your post yesterday . In any event I moved you back here to the Am I Infected forum into your own thread . Please do not post in any other forum or thread except this one .
If you are on PEP and you feel you had another exposure that had slipped your mind until today then you are doing great , keep taking the meds , see your doc and test again at the appropriate time . Pep works very well for people who need it so you are in luck .
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Chris,
You are not permitted to post anywhere on these forums other than here, in your thread in Am I Infected.
When he took his penis out of me, the condom did not have any obvious sign of breakage, though I did not examine it closely.
I might have been exposed to HIV on Saturday night due to a possible condom break.
If the condom had broken, it would have been obvious. Broken condoms are NOT about little bitty holes.
You have not had a risk for hiv infection. Condoms have been proven to prevent hiv infection. There have been three long-term studies of couples where one is positive and one is negative. In the couples who used condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, but no barrier for oral activities, not one of the negative partners became infected with hiv. Not one.
You really do not need to be taking PEP. Whether or not you continue is entirely up to you.
As for PEP's effectiveness, if you had actually had a risk you did start taking it in plenty of time and both of the two different combos you took are effective. (Combivir is a combination of two meds.)
But, you did NOT have a risk and you're taking strong medication you do not need. Again, it's entirely up to you whether or not you waste NHS funds by taking something you do not need.
Here's what you need to know in order to avoid hiv infection:
You need to be using condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, every time, no exceptions until such time as you are in a securely monogamous relationship where you have both tested for ALL sexually transmitted infections together.
To agree to have unprotected intercourse is to consent to the possibility of being infected with an STI. Sex without a condom lasts only a matter of minutes, but hiv is forever.
Have a look through the condom and lube links in my signature line so you can use condoms with confidence.
Anyone who is sexually active should be having a full sexual health care check-up, including but not limited to hiv testing, at least once a year and more often if unprotected intercourse occurs.
If you aren't already having regular, routine check-ups, now is the time to start. As long as you make sure condoms are being used for intercourse, you can fully expect your routine hiv tests to return with negative results.
Don't forget to always get checked for all the other sexually transmitted infections as well, because they are MUCH easier to transmit than hiv. Some of the other STIs can be present with no obvious symptoms, so the only way to know for sure is to test.
Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple!
Ann
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Hi Chri . I'm wondering why you didn't mention your condom break in your post yesterday . In any event I moved you back here to the Am I Infected forum into your own thread . Please do not post in any other forum or thread except this one .
If you are on PEP and you feel you had another exposure that had slipped your mind until today then you are doing great , keep taking the meds , see your doc and test again at the appropriate time . Pep works very well for people who need it so you are in luck .
Hi Jeff,
First of all, my apologies for posting in the wrong forum!
I have not had another exposure, I'm talking about the same exposure. It may be that a break occurred, or that there was a risk of leakage because the condom was not removed immediately after ejaculation. How risky is it not to remove a condom immediately after ejaculation? This is the only way I can think of possible exposure if, according to what you guys have said, a condom fail is very obvious (which it wasn't in this case).
Many thanks for your help.
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Stop thinking, you never had an exposure. Condoms don't leak and as you told had you had a condom failure you would have known without a doubt.
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Stop thinking, you never had an exposure. Condoms don't leak and as you told had you had a condom failure you would have known without a doubt.
RapidRod Thank you. I'm not trying to indulge myself in paranoia, I just want to accurately assess the extent (or non-extent) of my risk.
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You have been accurately accessed multiple times.
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yes, but if you look closely I actually asked a different question in my post today (it was about the extent of risk incurred by not removing a condom immediately after ejaculation as opposed to repeating the old discussion about the obviousness of a condom failure).
I thank you for your patience.
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Again no risk, if you left the condom on.
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Again no risk, if you left the condom on.
Thanks RapidRod. Have a lovely sunday :)
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Chris,
You are not permitted to post anywhere on these forums other than here, in your thread in Am I Infected.
If the condom had broken, it would have been obvious. Broken condoms are NOT about little bitty holes.
You have not had a risk for hiv infection. Condoms have been proven to prevent hiv infection. There have been three long-term studies of couples where one is positive and one is negative. In the couples who used condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, but no barrier for oral activities, not one of the negative partners became infected with hiv. Not one.
You really do not need to be taking PEP. Whether or not you continue is entirely up to you.
As for PEP's effectiveness, if you had actually had a risk you did start taking it in plenty of time and both of the two different combos you took are effective. (Combivir is a combination of two meds.)
But, you did NOT have a risk and you're taking strong medication you do not need. Again, it's entirely up to you whether or not you waste NHS funds by taking something you do not need.
Here's what you need to know in order to avoid hiv infection:
You need to be using condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, every time, no exceptions until such time as you are in a securely monogamous relationship where you have both tested for ALL sexually transmitted infections together.
To agree to have unprotected intercourse is to consent to the possibility of being infected with an STI. Sex without a condom lasts only a matter of minutes, but hiv is forever.
Have a look through the condom and lube links in my signature line so you can use condoms with confidence.
Anyone who is sexually active should be having a full sexual health care check-up, including but not limited to hiv testing, at least once a year and more often if unprotected intercourse occurs.
If you aren't already having regular, routine check-ups, now is the time to start. As long as you make sure condoms are being used for intercourse, you can fully expect your routine hiv tests to return with negative results.
Don't forget to always get checked for all the other sexually transmitted infections as well, because they are MUCH easier to transmit than hiv. Some of the other STIs can be present with no obvious symptoms, so the only way to know for sure is to test.
Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple!
Ann
Ann- What's your opinion on the risk of not removing a condom immediately after ejaculation.
Many thanks
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Ann- What's your opinion on the risk of not removing a condom immediately after ejaculation.
Many thanks
It doesn't matter as far as hiv risks go.
We've told you all we can about your situation. There's nothing more to add. Just because you took out a subscription does not exempt you from being given a time out for repeatedly asking the same questions over and over again.
You haven't had a risk. You don't need PEP. What you do regarding the PEP is up to you. You have to make your own decision regarding PEP - we cannot and will not make that decision for you.
Ann
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It doesn't matter as far as hiv risks go.
We've told you all we can about your situation. There's nothing more to add. Just because you took out a subscription does not exempt you from being given a time out for repeatedly asking the same questions over and over again.
You haven't had a risk. You don't need PEP. What you do regarding the PEP is up to you. You have to make your own decision regarding PEP - we cannot and will not make that decision for you.
Ann
Thanks Ann. Have a fantastic week!
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It doesn't matter as far as hiv risks go.
We've told you all we can about your situation. There's nothing more to add. Just because you took out a subscription does not exempt you from being given a time out for repeatedly asking the same questions over and over again.
You haven't had a risk. You don't need PEP. What you do regarding the PEP is up to you. You have to make your own decision regarding PEP - we cannot and will not make that decision for you.
Ann
Hi Ann,
I hope you don't get angry because I'm asking another question- I just appreciate your expertise (and the others kind enough to give me their advice).
Is a condom more likely to break in anal sex if lubricant is not used?
many thanks
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Is a condom more likely to break in anal sex if lubricant is not used?
Of course it is - that's why you're supposed to use plenty of water-based lube.
HOWEVER - it only makes it more likely to break, it doesn't guarantee breakage. Most condoms on the market today are already pre-lubed to an extent, but adding extra water-based lube is the smart thing to do if you don't want breakage.
And for the last time, a broken condom is VERY obvious. It's not about small or microscopic holes. The microscopic hole thing is primarily a myth put out by the Catholic church who do not want people to use condoms. It's a scare tactic trying to make people think - if they're not going to work anyway, why bother. Don't buy into that crap.
You know, at the end of the day, if you cannot bring yourself to believe us when we tell you that you had no risk, go test, collect your negative result and move on with your life. As a sexually active adult you should be testing at least once a year anyway.
It's high time you got on with your life.
Ann
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Of course it is - that's why you're supposed to use plenty of water-based lube.
HOWEVER - it only makes it more likely to break, it doesn't guarantee breakage. Most condoms on the market today are already pre-lubed to an extent, but adding extra water-based lube is the smart thing to do if you don't want breakage.
And for the last time, a broken condom is VERY obvious. It's not about small or microscopic holes. The microscopic hole thing is primarily a myth put out by the Catholic church who do not want people to use condoms. It's a scare tactic trying to make people think - if they're not going to work anyway, why bother. Don't buy into that crap.
You know, at the end of the day, if you cannot bring yourself to believe us when we tell you that you had no risk, go test, collect your negative result and move on with your life. As a sexually active adult you should be testing at least once a year anyway.
It's high time you got on with your life.
Ann
Thank you. Please don't assume my continual questioning is symptomatic of disbelief. Not at all. I entirely believe/respect your analysis and am grateful for it. I just couldn't understand why I felt the leakage which I did, which I'm pretty certain was cum. I wont' ask any further questions as you're right I need to focus on my life. Constant speculation is unhealthy. I'll just hope for the best until I can do my next test. Thank you once again for your patience and help.