Newly diagnosed

[LearnedMan518]

Male, 61, heterosexual, generally very healthy except for moderate Sarcoidosis.

Quest HERPES SIMPLEX VIRUS 2 IGG AB INHIBITION index value of 6.42; never had an outbreak; confirmed after inhibition test. Also HSV-1 index of 15; i’ve had outbreaks 1-2x a year for decades.

Should I seek a confirmatory test for HSV-2 or accept this as valid?

My partner is very concerned about transmission – do you recommend maintenance therapy for me using a suppressive treatment (of course I will discuss it with a prescribing doctor too)?

Is it accurate to say there is low risk of HSV-2 transmission orally (either way) as long as there’s no current outbreak?

Please tell me more about the swab at home approach – does it provide instant results so that if I see my partner once a week, I may be able to tell her I wasn’t shedding when I tested that day?

[Terri Warren]

We have seen false positive inhibition assays. You could do the blot as a confirmation but your IgG is relatively high though I have seen false positives at that level.
If your partner tests negative for HSV 2, then I do recommend suppressive therapy to reduce transmission and condoms.
if you have genital HSV 2, then there is no risk of you giving her oral sex and transmitting HSV 2.
There is a small risk of you transmitting HSV 2 to a woman by her giving you oral sex.
The daily home swabbing is not instant, no.

Terri

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