- This topic has 3 replies, 2 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 5 months ago by .
-
Posts
-
-
Is it at all possible to acquire HSV-2 or HSV-1 non-sexually from using a public restroom? Not the toilet. I know this will sound a little strange, but I had a traumatic hsv-2 scare 8 months ago. While I don’t have hsv-2, I’ve been paranoid about genital herpes since. I am dealing with my paranoia and will see a psychiatrist next week. I went to the public restroom in the building where I work. Now, my office is the only one that uses this bathroom (men’s room). Maybe about 8 different people total. I went in the other day and I turned on the light and I immediately noticed the light switch was wet, which was strange to me. I didn’t think anything of it at the time and just wiped my hand/fingers on my shirt and continued to the bathroom stall to urinate. But it got me wondering since I touched my genitals after my hands got wet would it be possible to get HSV genitally from that? I know how ridiculous that sounds but I need someone to quantify the risks for me. Now, there are only two sinks in that bathroom, and both were dry–so the wet light switch wasn’t from someone washing their hands and then touching the switch. Which made me think it might be someone’s urine which would be absolutely disgusting but what else could it be right? Although the light switch looked clear and not yellow. See how I’m reasoning about this? I touch a light switch with urine on it touch my genitals while urinating myself. Can that transmit herpes genitally? Either type 1 or type 2? Is there any risk whatsoever? I was concerned because I seem to be getting intertrigo again in my groin area in a skin fold which I’ve gotten in the past and so the coincidence just unnerved me and little patches are starting to bleed (which has happened before with my intertrigo, although it *always* goes away on its own). So is non-sexual transmission of genital herpes like in the scenario I’ve just described at all possible? Assume the worst case–was urine on the light switch, etc etc.
-
Let’s assume the worse that it was urine. Urine is not a good carrier of herpes at all. I think your risk is zero honestly. Zero. I hear that you are nervous about this but I hope I can put your mind at rest. If an uninfected male is having sex with an infected female, 104 times in a year, without her taking medicine or using condoms, only 4 men out of 100 would get infected. If that’s true how likely could it possible be if there was a drop of urine on the light switch that you would get HSV 2? Zero likely
Terri
-
-
IgM is NOT good, correct. It has many false positive in people who don’t have herpes. I cannot tell you how long it takes to make IgM antibody because there is simply no good research on the accuracy of this test and the CDC recommends now that it not be used and I would never use it.
Terri
-
You must register to ask your own question or be logged in to reply to this question.