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Throat, joint pain, mouth ulcer after unprotected sex.

Resolved Question:

Hi,
About 1.5 months ago I had one time unprotected vaginal sex with a random girl I met in the internet (didn't seem slutty or anything)
About 2-3 weeks later I started having a severe throat pain, some joint pains and mouth ulcers and pain. Basically my general feeling became better after 3-4 days but since then for over a month I have been having persistent throat pain coming back again which freaks me out. I took antibiotics for 10 days which didn't help.. I had no fever, no rash and the throat pain is just chronic.
I will get tested of course but wanted in general to hear your perception on my chances of acquiring HIV that way and if these symptoms seem similar or am I just being paranoid...

Category: HIV- AIDS Specialist

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Category: HIV- AIDS Specialist
 24 Doctors Online

Hello,
Thank you for your query at DoctorSpring.com
I understand your concern.
Throat pain is mostly due to pharyngitis and HIV even if acquired does not show up this early.
Moreover there is only a 1/1000th chance to acquire HIV from one single uprotected intercourse or lesser.
So, I can understand that you are worried, however, you do not need to be.
You can get tested after 2 months.
Hope this was helpful,
Regards.


Patient replied :

Hi,
Thx for that. It's just important for me to emphasize that the throat pain did start in a kind of a flu - I had 2-3 nights of night sweats, some weird joint pains and basically the throat pain with mouth ulcers just stayed for over a month and the general feeling got better... I just wanted to ask if this presentation is common for ARS or does it always include fever/rash etc and if it lasts this long?


Hello,
Yes, viral infections can present the way you mentioned above. You need to take an oral examination to exclude any infections like tonsils and adenoids.
Regards


Patient replied :

I didn't ask about a viral virus and checked already for strep throat etc. just wanted to know from a you as an HiV specialist if what I experienced sounds typical for the first period of becoming infected.
Meaning if I didn't have a fever or a rash but only throat pain, mouth ulcers, a bit of night sweats and fatigue and some blue bruises that didn't go away and the throat pain is on for more than a month - if this sounds typical ARS to u from a one time vaginal Encounter. Is my question clear?


Hello,
You need to understand that symptoms and severity of ARS vary person to person. Symptoms may not even appear in many of the infected people but, it generally include fever, rash, headache, fatigue, joint pain etc., CD 4 cell count falls during this phase. But, I would like to advise you not to assume anything until you get your test results as it may be a simple viral fever.
Let me know if it clears the confusion for you, if not please feel free to ask further.
Regards


Patient replied :

Does Persistent sore throat of over a month tend to happen in ARS? Or does it just go away after a week or two?


Yes, symptoms in ARS can last 1 or 2 months until the immune system of the body takes over HIV viral replication.


Dr. Jaydeep Tripathy
Category: HIV- AIDS Specialist
Experience: 
MBBS from Sri Ramachandra University in December 2011
M.Med (Family Medicine) - TNMGR University, Chennai
MBA-MPH in Public Health in March 2016, SRM University
Finished AFIH in March 2016, SRM University
MRCP ( UK ), Internal Medicine, Royal College of Physicians, June 2016
Fellowship in Diabetology from Martin Luther University in January 2017

Currently Resident Physician, in MD Radiodiagnosis - Kamakshi Memorial Hospital, Chennai
Dr. Jaydeep Tripathy and 4 other Medical Specialists are ready to help you

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