Do I have it? Does he?

[scaredandsorry]

Hi there,

In 2012, I was told that I have herpes and the nurse that I talked to told me that my occasional canker sores were signs of an infection and that I should start taking Valtrex. I didn’t take the meds (never have) and since then I have visited four doctors. Doctors two and three said that I didn’t have herpes and doctors four and five say that I do.I don’t recall ever having sores, and most people say that I would know if I have had sores. I am still with Dr. number five. I was tested in 2013 and these are my results:

HSV 2 Glycoprotein Antibody IgG (0.13)
HSV 1 Glycoprotein Antibody IgG (1.15)
HSV 1/2 Antibody IgM (0.52)
HSV 1/2 Antibody IgG (8.97)

I am worried because most people say that I don’t have to disclose and to be honest, I hate having the conversation. I recently had sex for the first time in two years and I didn’t disclose because I honestly don’t know if I have anything. The results say, “Yes”, but the inconsistency among doctors make me less confident.

[Terri Warren]

Well, these results say you have HSV 1 infection but not HSV 2. HSV 1 is the virus that causes cold sores and 56% of the US Population between 14 and 49 have HSV 1 infection, if not more than that. Also, your HSV 1 index value falls into what we call the low positive range (1.1 to 3.5). There are some false positives in there, about 50% of HSV 2 tests that fall into this range are false positive and some HSV 1 as well. If you want the gold standard test, you can obtain a herpes western blot antibody test. Our clinic can hep you with that order or you can contact UW directly. It is not available routinely through local labs.
By the way, canker sores are not herpes, cold sores on the outside of the mouth are herpes. Huge difference. The nurse was WAAAY off.

Terri

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