Expert: Gorkey Gourab - 9/29/2010

Question
I sent a msg and didnt get any suitable answer. In the month of june, i had a protected vaginal sex and recieved an unprotected oral sex after a week i had diarrhea which might be as a result of the banana and hot peppery food i ate which stopped after some anti biotics and after a  week, i had rashes that looked like insect bites on one side of my body accompanied with night fever, night sweats, 1 swollen gland on my armpit, chills at night, fatique in the morning when i wake up but ok in the day, body,joint and muscle pains which stopped after two weeks and later another swollen gland in the armpit which went after some shave in the armpit and after 1 month genital hair loss but NO mouth thrush, loss of appetite or weight loss but increase in weight and excessive eating.I am very much ok now except for the genital hair loss. What could actually be the cause? Urgent pls.  

Answer
Hello Duke,

Although you had protected vaginal sex, you had unprotected oral sex at the same time. The risk of HIV transmission from an infected partner through oral sex is much smaller than the risk of HIV transmission from anal or vaginal sex. But the risk is there, although the experts in this field consider it as “extremely low risk” route of HIV transmission (HIV InSite, 2010; Public Health Agency of Canada, 2004). Unprotected oral sex has been associated with HIV infection in some studies. If you had open sores on your penis and the sex worker was HIV positive and she had open wounds in her moth, the risk is there.

Most people (up to 90%) with primary HIV infection have symptoms, usually 2 to 6 weeks after becoming infected with HIV. These symptoms are generally referred to as "acute retroviral syndrome” (The Body, 2010).

Primary HIV infection can have a variety of different symptoms. Some researchers believe that rash and fevers are the strongest predictors of primary HIV infection, especially when occurring in combination with one or more of the following symptoms:
Loss of appetite
Joint pain
Sore throat
Muscle pain
Swollen lymph nodes
Diarrhea
Fatigue
Nausea and vomiting
Headache
Oral or genital ulcers

Some people will become infected with HIV and have no symptoms. However, most people do have symptoms (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2004; The Body, 2010). As from your presentation, I have noticed a numbers of issues, which can be linked to primary HIV transmission.

Primary HIV infection is a medical emergency. You should seek prompt medical attention from a doctor (or clinic) who specializes in treating HIV. Getting tested is the best suggestion from my part.

I’m really sorry for the misunderstanding and the trouble you’ve gone through.

Best regards,
Gorkey

References cited:
1. HIV InSite. (2010). Risk of HIV Infection Through Receptive Oral Sex. Retrieved september 21, 2010, from http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/InSite?page=pr-rr-05%20
2. Public Health Agency of Canada. (2004). HIV/AIDS Epi Update - May 2004: Oral Sex and the Risk of HIV Transmission. Retrieved September 12, 2010, from http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/publicat/epiu-aepi/epi_update_may_04/13-eng.php
3. The Body. (2010). Primary HIV Infection. Retrieved September 23, 2010, from http://www.thebody.com/content/art16795.html