Unintentional Insertion

[hellionatl]

I'm a 28 year old male who on June 10th had protected insertive sex with a guy of unknown HIV status.  Before the condom went on, I rubbed my penis against him and accidentally slipped inside for 1-2 seconds.  Only the tip of my penis was inserted, and I immediately withdrew.  I thought nothing of it until earlier this week (nearly 9 weeks later after the sexual experience) when I came down with mono-like symptoms (sore throat, low grade fever of 99.2, fatigue) and sought treatment from my Primary Care Provided who immediately asked, "Have you been sexually active recently?"  When he learned that I had been and heard the details, he immediately recommended a PCR and prescribed a cycle of antibiotics.  I was shocked because I thought it was strep or something.  Suddenly I wondered Could his hunch be right?  Could I be experiencing acute HIV symptoms at 8-9 weeks?  Incidentally, I did have an HIV test between then and now during a routine doctor's visit on July 7th.  My results were negative, but he reminded me that I might be in the three month window.

Anyway, my mono-like symptoms are gone, but I have a very dry mouth and some crazy-looking bumps on the top rear of my tongue toward my esophogus.  They must be affecting my throat, too, because I have a cough.  Could this be a caused by the antibiotics?

Regardless, my anxiety level has gone through the roof.  I thought PCR tests were given when someone had recently been involved in high risk behavior.  Would my unintentional insertion classify as high risk?  If so, should I be worried, or am I over-reacting?  My test should be back on Monday, but I would like some advice because it's late on a Friday night and it's all I can think about... please.

[jkinatl2]

While what you describe is an exceedingly LOW risk for HIV infection, low risk isn't the same as no risk. The important part of safer sex, as I am sure you are aware, is using condoms consistently and correctly, from start to finish. No "dipping" (the term for brief insertion).

While I have every confidence that you will test negative, I would still recommend an STD panel, including an HIV test, in 13 weeks to be absolutely sure. Also, of course, it's a good idea to get that done twice a year regardless, so long as you are sexually active outside a committed, monogamous relationship.

As for your symptoms, they really are irrelevant in terms of your risk. Symptoms absolutely cannot be used to diagnose HIV, as they are vague and mimic literally thousands of other things... including stress.

[hellionatl]

Dipping, eh?  I wasn't aware of the term ;-)  I really appreciate your response/ recommendation and will definitely get an HIV test @ 13 weeks.  You mention that the symptoms are irrelevant, but the doctor seemed concerned by them.  Do symptoms sometimes present as late as 8 weeks from infection?  Just curious.

[Ann]

hellion,

I want to warn you that PCR tests are not approved for diagnostic purposes because they have a bad habit of returning FALSE positive results. Your doctor really had no business testing you with a PCR. If he knew anything about hiv testing and had questioned you more closely, he would have simply given you a standard antibody test.

Why? Because the vast majority of people who have actually been infected will seroconvert and test positive on the antibody tests by six weeks, with the average time to seroconversion being only 22 days. The fact that you had a negative result at around four weeks is a good indication that you will continue to test negative - but it is by no means conclusive.

It would be highly unlikely for you to test positive after your very brief insertive incident - but you are wise to test.

If by chance you do get a positive result on that PCR, don't panic. If the numbers are under 20,000, it is most likely a false positive. The viral load (the name of the number result of a PCR test) in primary infection is usually sky-high (90,000+) and a low viral load usually indicates a false positive. Any positive result on a PCR MUST be confirmed with an antibody test. Check out the testing lesson linked to in the Welcome Thread

Hang in there and keep us posted. I'm fully expecting you to test negative on an antibody test.

Ann

[hellionatl]

Thanks for your comments, Ann.  My PCR should be back tomorrow.  My assumption is that if the results are negative (no viral load), then no additional testing is necessary.  But if it shows anything above 1, I should request the standard antibody test.  If this isn't right, let me know.  This has been the longest weekend EVER...

[hellionatl]

Just wanted to let you know that my PCR result came in today, and it was completely negative.  My symptoms weren't related to acute HIV.  Note to self:  don't use the internet to diagnose myself in the future.  I also wanted to say thanks for your advice/ feedback.  You can be sure that the next time I have sex it'll be protected.