
I Am An Admitted Obsessive Compulsive/hypochondriac But Here It Goes:

I engaged in unprotected insertive oral sex with a man of unknown status. My only act of sexual activity in many months. There was no visible blood of any kind and my penis did not have any open sores. I was flaccid throughout and the whole abortive ordeal lasted 90 seconds. No ejaculatory release took place. 25 days later I get a random bout of cellulitis on my right thumb. I was then placed on antibiotics. I decided to get a 4th generation p24 antigen/antibody test at 28 days that came back negative. While the advisor told me he cannot say this is conclusive as per adherence to the standard testing time window...the incredibly low risk activity and negative 4th generation test at 4 weeks was an overwhelming sign that I am free and clear.
He then handed me his waste bin to dispose of the gauze I used during the finger prick. It had the gloves he wore, paperwork, and I think other (albeit concealed) testing equipment from prior tests. My hand with the finger prick (though no longer bleeding) lightly grazed contents for a second by accident. No visible blood exchange whatsoever and while he apologized for the anxiety this may have caused me...even in the event that I had touched anything tainted the fragility of the virus alone after minutes or hours had gone by would not be a potential means of transmission exposure. He said that he takes all possible precautions including wiping down his desk with bleach before tests to protect patients as as himself.
A few days later I developed a sore throat solely on the left side of my throat and had bloody boogers coming out of my left nostril. I live in high altitude with frequent weather changes, am prone to sinus allergies, and was taking Bactrim for cellulitis. I attributed it to these factors and it went away in 4-5 days.
A few days later, after a night of resuming drinking and smoking a cigar off of the antibiotics: I now have a bad case of congestion, sore throat, headache, mild folliculitis on my chest (I have had it before but it seems particularly inflamed) and my temperature was between 98.3-99.7 F throughout Saturday, 97.9-99.5 F throughout Sunday, and today my temperature as of the morning hasn't gone above 98.1. I thought I experienced night sweats in the middle of Saturday night with a bit of sweat on my pillow/behind my neck and back legs but when I woke up my clothes/sheets were dry. Last night I did not experience any night sweats. I know I'm probably freaking out over nothing but is are any if these symptoms cause for alarm? Could briefly grazing the waste bin (casual contact) at the HIV clinic been another potential exposure? Should I get another test at 8 or 12 weeks?
Best regards

I engaged in unprotected insertive oral sex with a man of unknown status. My only act of sexual activity in many months. There was no visible blood of any kind and my penis did not have any open sores. I was flaccid throughout and the whole abortive ordeal lasted 90 seconds. No ejaculatory release took place. 25 days later I get a random bout of cellulitis on my right thumb. I was then placed on antibiotics. I decided to get a 4th generation p24 antigen/antibody test at 28 days that came back negative. While the advisor told me he cannot say this is conclusive as per adherence to the standard testing time window...the incredibly low risk activity and negative 4th generation test at 4 weeks was an overwhelming sign that I am free and clear.
He then handed me his waste bin to dispose of the gauze I used during the finger prick. It had the gloves he wore, paperwork, and I think other (albeit concealed) testing equipment from prior tests. My hand with the finger prick (though no longer bleeding) lightly grazed contents for a second by accident. No visible blood exchange whatsoever and while he apologized for the anxiety this may have caused me...even in the event that I had touched anything tainted the fragility of the virus alone after minutes or hours had gone by would not be a potential means of transmission exposure. He said that he takes all possible precautions including wiping down his desk with bleach before tests to protect patients as as himself.
A few days later I developed a sore throat solely on the left side of my throat and had bloody boogers coming out of my left nostril. I live in high altitude with frequent weather changes, am prone to sinus allergies, and was taking Bactrim for cellulitis. I attributed it to these factors and it went away in 4-5 days.
A few days later, after a night of resuming drinking and smoking a cigar off of the antibiotics: I now have a bad case of congestion, sore throat, headache, mild folliculitis on my chest (I have had it before but it seems particularly inflamed) and my temperature was between 98.3-99.7 F throughout Saturday, 97.9-99.5 F throughout Sunday, and today my temperature as of the morning hasn't gone above 98.1. I thought I experienced night sweats in the middle of Saturday night with a bit of sweat on my pillow/behind my neck and back legs but when I woke up my clothes/sheets were dry. Last night I did not experience any night sweats. I know I'm probably freaking out over nothing but is are any if these symptoms cause for alarm? Could briefly grazing the waste bin (casual contact) at the HIV clinic been another potential exposure? Should I get another test at 8 or 12 weeks?
Best regards


You are not at risk of getting HIV.
Detailed Answer:
Dear Adern,
Welcome to Ask a Specialist Service.
The exposure you had mentioned is not at all risky and 4th generation HIV Duos test after 28 days of exposure is also negative which is considered highly reliable so you need not to think too much about HIV because you are not at risk of getting it.
Sore throat, congestion or headache might be due to climatic change but not related to HIV in any way and you are prone to sinus allergy also so consult your physician or ENT specialist to isolate the cause and follow the treatment as per the advice.
The window period for HIV infection varies from 15 days to 3 months so I suggest you to go for repeat test after 12 weeks of exposure to get 100% conclusive result. Be relaxed, allay the fear or anxiety of HIV and live your life normally because the result will surely come as negative after 12 weeks. If still you have any doubt in your mind please feel free to ask me again.
Thank You

You are not at risk of getting HIV.
Detailed Answer:
Dear Adern,
Welcome to Ask a Specialist Service.
The exposure you had mentioned is not at all risky and 4th generation HIV Duos test after 28 days of exposure is also negative which is considered highly reliable so you need not to think too much about HIV because you are not at risk of getting it.
Sore throat, congestion or headache might be due to climatic change but not related to HIV in any way and you are prone to sinus allergy also so consult your physician or ENT specialist to isolate the cause and follow the treatment as per the advice.
The window period for HIV infection varies from 15 days to 3 months so I suggest you to go for repeat test after 12 weeks of exposure to get 100% conclusive result. Be relaxed, allay the fear or anxiety of HIV and live your life normally because the result will surely come as negative after 12 weeks. If still you have any doubt in your mind please feel free to ask me again.
Thank You

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