MEO1016

Hi everyone, Just curious if I should really go to an Infectious Disease doctor for genital HSV 1. Or is it better going to an OBGYN? I went to see my OBGYN about this with my boyfriend who tested negative for type 1 and 2 from an IgG blood test. We never had intercourse but we would like to wait for the right time. A little background on this whole situation is that I've had genital hsv 1 for almost 2 years ( I was diagnosed in July 2016) and only had one occurrence a couple months ago which went away in a few days with antivirals and was very small. I was diagnosed from a typed culture that came back positive for HSV 1 and negative for HSV 2. My IgM was also positive while my IgG was negative indicating this was a recent infection. Long story short I'm no longer with that person who gave it to me for other reasons and not that he gave me herpes. So I met my current boyfriend about 3 months ago and was open and honest about my situation, I didn't want someone to suffer like I did. No emotional support or even know what they had at that point. He's been very supportive like going to the doctor with me to talk to OBGYN and get information on my condition. He's just very scared of catching this from me and made it clear he does not want this. He was also with a girl who had oral HSV 1 with recurrent outbreaks for 2 years and has never caught it or the blood test missed his antibodies but he's confident he doesn't have it. I just don't understand his hesitance... He had more of a chance getting both oral and genital hsv 1 from her than me... Anyways, my boyfriend was skeptical about some of the things she said, some being; 1. I'm 99% not contagious and the only time I'm really contagious is during an outbreak and to just avoid sex at that point obviously. 2. There are really no precautions to take when we have sex. 3. It's possible that I have oral hsv 1 though I never had a cold sore during or since my initial genital outbreak. etc. Has anyone ever been to an infectious disease doctor for this? What was your experience? Was it negative or positive?

@Jack101, we’ve know each other for 3 months been exclusive for 2. This isn’t a recent infection I had genital type 1 for almost 2 years at this point.

Honestly you don’t have to go to a infectious disease doctor about this , the risk is only 2% he just has to deal w the risk when it come to you I wish my boyfriend could deal with it, he's a germaphobe in a way. He started freaking out when he saw tiny red bumps from irritation on his penis. He's been supportive but really afraid of catching herpes from me.

Hello, I would advise he get a Western Blot test for HSV-1. The common ELISA test misses up to 30% of HSV-1 infections (far to unreliable for decision purposes). You will not need to use protection if he is already infected. Hi Jack, Thanks for responding. Do you know of a way to obtain the Western Blot? Apparently Westover Heights is not doing it through Quest labs but you can still get it through AnyLabTestNow. My problem is is that the nearest one of the labs are 100 miles away from where I live.

Yesterday my boyfriend and I went to my OBGYN to discuss my herpes condition and what kind of precautions we should take when we have sex or should I take an antiviral to reduce transmission. So long story short she kind of made it out to be really nothing at all. I mean herpes no matter the type is just an annoying skin condition after all, but the way she made it sound was kind of concerning... well at least to my boyfriend and somewhat me. I told her about my test results that came back as a positive culture for genital HSV 1 and neg. for type 2. I did also have a positive igM that was 1.0. My igG results came back negative (type 1 was 0.3, type 2 was 0.1) indicating it was a recent infection. She told me that the labs don't really differentiate what type you have or that the tests aren't sensitive enough. I felt what she basically saying was that genital herpes is genital herpes regardless of what type you have. I know in a sense they share a lot of similarities but the way they both behave down below are two different stories such as reoccurrence, shedding and transmission. My boyfriend also asked her how likely I have it orally (I've never had a cold sore in my life and based on my results its unlikely I ever had HSV 1 until 2 years ago) and she told us that we can't really tell and it doesn't discern its location. Doesn't having in one area of your body make it very unlikely to acquire it anywhere else? Now, my boyfriend tested negative for HSV 1 & HSV 2 (I assume it was an igG not an igM but his doctor didn't specify). I think his result was .01 for type 1. Though I know the igG can miss 1 out of 10 cases of HSV 1 and the WB is really the only accurate test for it. He's convinced he doesn't have it because he never got a cold sore and tested negative for the blood test. He previously dated a girl who had recurrent outbreaks of oral HSV 1 for 2 years and majority of his family members get cold sores. So either the blood test missed his antibodies or he has a lot of luck lol. Getting back to my doctor, she was saying that 99% not contagious and I'm really only contagious is when I'll get an outbreak and we don't have to take any precautions during sex (but obviously avoid sex during an OB). My boyfriend walked out of her office very skeptical, he looks at statistics and only reliable sources. He also has OCD about his health and anything medical, he basically thinks he's dying everytime he gets sick. He's really scared about catching it too. We've only known each other about 3 months but we want to be prepared when we do get to that point and have sex. We plan on going to an Infectious Disease doctor in 3 weeks to get a second opinion (my boyfriend rather hear it from a doctor than the internet) but hopefully its something positive he has to say. I've done a lot of research about genital HSV 1 and it seems theres not much to worry about is that true?

Hi all! Before I get anywhere I've had genital HSV 1 for almost 2 years that I contracted from a ex- partner of mine. I've only had 2 outbreaks in the whole time I got my first initial one which was horrible, the second one was not nearly as bad as the first. I met someone new that I very much want to have sex with. I disclosed to him when we first started to talk about sex since I wanted to be honest and not have someone go through what I went through. He's been really supportive about the whole thing, but of course he's being really cautious. He was previously with a girl for 2 years who had oral HSV 1 (alot of frequent outbreaks but they avoided kissing etc. during that time) so he went to get the blood test last week for HSV 1 and HSV 2 which came back negative for both types. I think he was .01 for HSV 1. Now I just feel really hopeless no matter how supportive he's being. It's been hard waiting on his results and then while no one wants herpes at all we were at least hoping it worked out for us you know? I scheduled an appointment with my OBGYN thats in about 4 weeks to discuss with her about what could we do when we do cross that bridge and actually plan on having sex. I highly doubt he would catch this from my genitals because it is not in the preferred site of HSV 1 if he didn't catch it from his ex who had it orally (which is supposedly shed a lot more often). Though I still want to take precautions. I have a few questions: 1. Is HSV 1 actually shed less than HSV 2? I've read that it is shed far less than or even at all than HSV 2. 2. Can I receive oral sex (without a dental dam)? 3. Is there really a point of taking an antiviral if the virus is not shed nearly as often as the other? 4.Is there really no hard facts of overall transmission rates of genital HSV 1?