I had gay encounters followed by a lot of bleeding. Can it be AIDS?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 32-year-old man. I had gay encounters with three men in a massage parlor on three different days. In all three cases, we have used condoms. In my second and third encounters, I got a lot of blood, and that too very dark-colored blood, and something else also came. I had a word with my doctor. He has asked me to get it tested. Three weeks after my encounter, I have taken tests for HIV 1 and 2. Both antibody screening tests (serum) and VDRL-RPR (serum) were non-reactive. Now it is more than 16 days. I am not feeling well. I cannot sleep during the night thinking about the possibility of AIDS. My company has laid our entire team. So, I am free nowadays. From today, I started feeling weak. For the past two to three days, I am also suffering from indigestion. Please help me.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I read your query and understand your concerns.

First of all, I like to inform you that the transmission of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) requires the mixing of body fluids. The use of condoms effectively prevents such mixing. I understand that there was bleeding, but the use of a condom will ensure that you did not get an infection.

Secondly, at 16 days, there is no chance that HIV will be tested positive. However, it is advisable to get tested for P24 antigen to get a confirmation that you are not infected, as I can see that a total of 25 days have passed (21 days before the test and 16 days after the test). This is the right time to use the western blot technique for the P24 antigen. I must inform you that the P24 antigen is a very specific test and can give you sure results at the end of four weeks in most cases.

Thirdly, I feel it is important to manage your stress level. I completely agree with your fear, but we need to understand that stress is not going to solve problems. It is rightly possible that your current symptoms are due to psychological stress. Do whatever you can to manage the stress. It is most important to remain engaged with one or another activity as idleness will cause more problems.

To conclude, I like to state that your current problem is psychological, and there is a need to take the right approach to manage it.