Coughing up blood?

[misuki84]

Hi.
My boyfriend coughed up blood last night and i was wondering if that could be a sign of hiv due to two unprotected encounters with a girl.
We do plan on getting tested next month as it will be three months from the encounter.

I noticed possible ars symptoms in myself some time after his encounters and have small swollen lymph nodes in my neck (that have gone done a little bit).

after he coughed up blood i found a possible lymph node on the right side of his neck.
i also found a couple small lumps in his groin, none visible..

i know he had a risk and we WILL get tested... but i'm wondering if it can be hiv.
thank you..

[Jeff G]

Misuki , if I or my BF was coughing blood I would be heading to the emergency room pronto .

We do not discuss symptoms because they are not specific to HIV and could be caused by thousands of other things besides HIV . The only way to know if you have HIV is to test , period . Discussing symptoms on a message board will not diagnose anything .

I think its safe to say that coughing up blood is serious and potentially fatal so go the doctor or emergency right now . 

[misuki84]

jeff, thanks for replying. we will get medical attention soon for him.
but i'd like to know (i know, i know, i can't rely on symptoms)
IF coughing up blood can be symptom for acute hiv... thank you again for patience.

[Jeff G]

jeff, thanks for replying. we will get medical attention soon for him.
but i'd like to know (i know, i know, i can't rely on symptoms)
IF coughing up blood can be symptom for acute hiv... thank you again for patience.

Im sorry that I cant give you what you want but I simply can not and will not guess what is causing a person to cough up blood .

Im concerned about your BF and I take All of the questions I answer very serious and my conscience tells me to stick to what's important and that's getting medical attention for you BF . I will go as far as to say coughing up blood is a sure sign that he could be critically ill , go see your doctor . I will also tell you that a person recently infected with HIV would not have a symptom as severe as coughing blood .

[Ann]

Misuki,

Coughing up blood has nothing to do with primary hiv infection - or even long-standing hiv infection. However, as Jeff has told you, it can be a sign that something very serious indeed is going on and if he hasn't seen a doctor about it yet, I suggest he does so at the earliest opportunity. Like yesterday.

I also suggest you test for hiv now, rather than waiting for the three month point.

The vast majority of people who have actually been infected will seroconvert and test positive by six weeks, with the average time to seroconversion being only 22 days.

A six week (or more) negative is highly unlikely to change, but must be confirmed at the three month point. A negative result now should put your minds at ease.

While you're here, you may as well get the low-down on how to prevent 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!

Again, I want to stress that coughing blood has nothing to do with primary hiv infection, but it is a sign that something else, possibly something very serious, is going on and it MUST be checked out. Even if by chance he does test hiv positive, coughing up blood will have no direct relation to hiv.

Good luck - I hope it's nothing too serious.

Ann

[misuki84]

Thank you guys for being so sweet and patient... we found that he wasn't coughing up blood - the blood was coming from his gums..

We still haven't gotten tested, but we ARE getting to that very very very soon!

Thank you SO much again. All of these comments are reassuring.