When did I contract herpes? so many questions

Posted , 2 users are following.

So I got diagnosed today with Herpes. I have been sexually active with my parnter for one month, we have never used condoms. My symptoms were horrible and feel like what an 'initial outbreak' is outlined as; sore groin lymph nodes, headaches, pain urinating, fever, 3 pimple like sores appeared 2days after other symptoms. How can I be sure I got it from my current partner? Everywhere says that initial outbreak occurs 2-20 days after contact with the virus, however other things say that it can lay dormant in your system for YEARS and you not even know. Im very healthy at the moment, no reason for my immune system to be down, and I have always used condoms with past partners. Partner has no symptoms. All the information is so confusing and its all very overwhelming. 

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4 Replies

  • Posted

    For most people, the first outbreak typically follows the normal incubation period after infection, so it is probably from your current partner. It is possible to have and pass the virus without recognisable symptoms through viral shedding.

    Only way to tell if this is a new infection is to immediately swab (culture, or better yet, pcr) *and* do an IgG (not IgM) antibody test. If the swab is positive but your IgG is negative, then it's new. Be sure to test for both hsv types. Hope that helps!

    • Posted

      Thank you so much for your reply. My doctor did a swab test today. How do I go about getting an IgG antibody test? Do i have to request that? What is it?
    • Posted

      It's a type of antibody test that you probably have to request. Say you want to do it to determine whether you already have herpes or not. IgM is another type of antibody test, but it is not recommended for herpes, since it is not type-specific and not reliable. IgG is pretty accurate, but it will only turn positive once your body has produced sufficient antibodies, which can be anywhere from a month to 3+ months, so best to do it sooner rather than later for baseline proposes.
    • Posted

      Thank you so much, i will try and get this done tomorrow. I really want to know everything I can about this.

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