Indeterminate western blot plus low igg number for over a year

[AnonB123]

Hello Terri so i am a 23 year old female. So Let start off by saying i went for a Pap smear with my regular doctor not my gynecologist and i had 3 ingrowns from just shaving 2 days prior to yes i was messing with one trying to get the hair and pulled the top layer of skin off that’s was the only one like that. so she left out came back in and said well no one called you in September of 2020 to tell you that you tested positive for hsv 1 and 2 I’m like no and i didn’t ask to be tested so why was i tested? I knew the test had a bunch of errors and i have had hsv 1 my entire life so always felt like that could throw off my test. The igg number that i had from 2020 was 1.08 for hsv2 and 50 for hsv1 now i have never had an outbreak or anything close to one i check myself daily and my partner checked me a lot also so it threw me off. So i asked her to retest me my igg number for hsv1 was 48 and hsv2 was 0.93 went to another doctor the next day for confirmation he said one looked like in folliculitis nothing to worry about which was the one i picked at so he swabbed it and took blood his swab came back negative and pcr blood test detected no hsv so it wasn’t an outbreak but his igg test was positive numbers were 8 for hsv1 and 1.2 for hsv 2. so i did the Western blot through him and it came back indeterminate. The last time i was sexually active with a male was 7 months ago and it was protected no oral that was my 2nd time ever being active with a male and i was sexually active with a girl in October of 2021 so about 11 or 12 weeks before i did my western blot test But it was oral and of course a sex toy i have always been with girls . So no real outbreaks and no symptoms i recently had COVID and still no outbreak and i have been checking daily. So my question to you is can i consider my indeterminate western blot as a negative? I still am going to retest in 3 months i just wanted to know could i count that as a negative?

[AnonB123]

I also feel like if i was truly positive my igg numbers should have went up by now i shouldn’t still be building antibodies it should be a definite yes so i just wanted your input

[Terri Warren]

Your first two tests were NOT positive – they were equivocal. That was an error to tell you that you were positive.
Since condoms reduce transmission by 96%, I think the male intercourse is very very unlikely to result in herpes for you. With your very low positive HSV 2 and your sexual history being what it is, I think it is very likely that you have a false positive HSV 2 IgG test. I can’t promise that, but if you want more reassurance you could do the blot. I would bet lots of money you’ll be negative.

Terri

[AnonB123]

My first western blot was indeterminate so that scared me a little but i went through your forum and the questions and saw that proteins in your blood could cause the indeterminate and my Gynecologist said if i had it for a year and a couple of months my number should of went up by now. I just really wanted your input to make sure i wasn’t going crazy just coming up with things in my head but thank you so much makes me feel a lot better but i do still want the 2nd blot. I just want to be cautious because I’m lesbian now

[AnonB123]

I did that first western blot in January so i still might do the 2nd one my primary care doctor said he doesn’t think it’s necessary since i haven’t had any risky sex and i should definitely be positive by now if i actually had it but it might just give me a peace of mind so thank you very much your input is really the clarification that i needed

[Terri Warren]

I think it will be worth your peace of mind to do it, even though I agree that the risk is low.

Terri

[AnonB123]

Hello Terri so I did my 2nd blot and surprisingly it came back positive for hsv2 which confused me because I haven’t been sexually active and the first was indeterminate. I’m not understanding how i got “exposed” in September of 2020 and got an indeterminate in February of 2022 that should of been a established infection now it’s saying positive so That means i possible caught it from oral which is rare! My question to you is should my doctor ask them to have the test re ran or should i just accept the positive

[AnonB123]

I have so many questions that no one can seem to answer it’s like no one knows anything about hsv….
First question 1. Why haven’t my numbers gone up if i have had this for a year and a couple of months now?
2. If the western blot is accurate why was my first test indeterminate instead of just positive?
3. Why are all of my partners testing negative and I’m still “positive”?
4.how am I asymptomatic and i have a very weak immune system?
5. What is the female to female transmission rate for hsv2?
6. Should i have the test redid?

[Terri Warren]

I would like to have the lab look at both of your blots side by side. I have never seen an indeterminate go from indeterminate to positive and if yours did, it would be my first. Before we go into all of your questions, I would like to do this first. I can find your email from your post and I will write to you about this and you will give me your name and I will check into it. Do you know the HSV 2 status of the person you had sex with in September of 2020?
And are telling me that every person you’ve ever had sex with tests negative for HSV 2?

Terri

[AnonB123]

Yes she’s negative and I haven’t asked everyone but her and the other person from 2021 are both negative which is why I’m confused because i would of thought i would of given it to one of them by now because we didn’t use protection and I did not know I had hsv2

[Terri Warren]

I’m working on it.

Terri

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