herpes and other sti testing?

[Kremlin 482]

How often do people get tested? Why isn't herpes a regular test preformed at clinics? Studies show 80% of people with herpes don't even know?

[Guest D***el B***e]

Ok, so I'm confused ... you've been a member for 4 years, this is your first post and you ask about std testing? By the way, what's herpes?

[roamingguy 300291]

Some threads on the topic

 

http://www.lyla.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=103179&highlight=testing

 

http://www.lyla.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=141071&highlight=testing

 

http://www.lyla.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=38838&highlight=testing

 

http://www.lyla.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=198543&highlight=testing

 

http://www.lyla.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=196244&highlight=testing

 

 

RG

[Kremlin 482]

Thank you for the replies. Yes I have been a member a while and do get tested regular when I was a hobbiest. My question comes down to is herpes part of your normal tests? I know at the public clinics locally to me they are not. I'm am waiting for my blood work to see if I have it or not. At this time I don't know. I did get chlamydia and molluscum from somebody in the past but when I contact people I have been with they all say it wasn't them.

[Kathryn Bardot 99339]

Honestly, you need to be proactive about your own sexual health and know what tests are available to you and ask for them. Personally, I've had to argue with one of the nurses at the sexual health clinic for an HIV test because they deemed me "low risk" due to condom use and did not want to include blood tests -- just the urine test for chlamydia and gonorrhea. Know what tests you want included and check with the nurse/doctor to be sure they're including them on the requisition.

 

In Ontario, this is what a general requisition looks like. All of the test codes are on the back of the form, which gives you an idea of what public health can test for (HIV testing is a separate form).

[chwub 100]

Every year as part of my physical.

[loopie 15358]

I had a similiar experience as Kathryn, I was told there was no point in getting an AIDS test because I was in a low risk demographic (hetero male with no drug use). The reason I was at the clinic was because a condom came off during vaginal intercourse, so I went in to get tested for everything I could. Even with that explanation they tried to talk me out of the AIDS test.

[roamingguy 300291]

It is part of your own personal health. Me, I get testing done every couple months when I go in to have blood levels taken (I take meds for something unrelated, once every couple months I have blood levels taken) At that time I also get tested for std/sti's

But frequency of testing should be determined by frequency of encounters. Someone having fifteen encounters a month will need more frequent testing than someone having an encounter once a year

Your personal dating history dictates testing frequency

It's done through my doctor, he is aware (only one outside this lifestyle) that I see companions

And while the testing is for your own personal health (each and every person is responsible or should be for their own health) if I tested positive for anything I would contact ladies I have seen to let them know

This is not to assess blame, in this lifestyle we are all opposite sides of the same coin no one is to blame. But it is to tell ladies I know, like and respect that they should get tested.

Fortunately I haven't had to contact a lady for such a reason

Anyhow a rambling

 

RG

[fortunateone 156618]

If you just go to an sti clinic, which will also give you anonymity if you wish, they will not be as squeamish about agreeing to all tests. Also, even the one near me with limited open times has the rapid on the spot test available when they are open.

 

I find that regular clinics/doctors act like they are paying for the tests out of their own pockets. i don't feel they are even worth bothering with when i want a full work up.

[Phaedrus 209521]

I have to say, the stories of reluctance to test surprise me. I know some are more complex than others, but HIV can be done with a take-home kit these days (although there has been some debate about whether or not that's a good idea...)

[Guest *o*m*s]

How often do people get tested? Why isn't herpes a regular test preformed at clinics? Studies show 80% of people with herpes don't even know?

 

In Nova Scotia they won't even do a test for you for herpes unless you have a lesion.

[TorontoMelanieJolliet 4458]

In Nova Scotia they won't even do a test for you for herpes unless you have a lesion.

 

Same in Ontario. But you can have a blood test that is apparently quite pricey if you want to pay for it. But then they say having a test without a breakout won't do any good. So a catch-22 i guess

[Luckyme 41401]

Every year as part of my physical.

 

 

Depending on the frequency of one's hobbying activities, once a year may not be adequate.

[Regent 35404]

Routine herpes (hsv) testing is not recommended, because there's no evidence that it improves health outcomes, and for people who have an asymptomatic infection, might actually have negative health outcomes (poor mental health outcomes because of stigma.)

 

Most people will have HSV1 in their lifetime. That is the strain that usually lives around the mouth. About 20% of people will have HSV2, the strain that usually lives around the genitals. However, each strain can appear on other parts of the body, and genital HSV1 infections are becoming more common - up to 50% of new genital infections are HSV1.

 

If you get a herpes blood test, it will tell you whether or not you have HSV (though there are different rates of false positives with different types of tests.) However, not all labs will do serotyping, so for example, in Manitoba, you can find out if you have HSV, but not which strain (blood test only.)

 

So let's say you get a blood test and it comes back positive. You don't know what strain you have so if you've never had symptoms, you have no way to know which area of the body you might shed the virus from. Without knowing which area of your body is infected, your options to reduce risk of transmission are limited - you can use a condom and gloves when you have sex (always a good idea anyway), and you can take a daily viral suppressant, which reduces your risk of asymptomatic transmission by about 50%. (Without suppressive therapy, asymptomatic shedding happens between 1 and 10% of the time, depending on the study.)

 

Suppressive therapy is a good fit for some people but not everyone. It can be expensive and like all drugs, there can be side effects or contraindications.

 

So from a public health and individual health perspective, routine testing is not recommended because it's not going to make things better or reduce transmission significantly, but it is costly, both in terms of medical resources and patient mental health. Genital herpes is highly stigmatized, where as oral herpes (cold sores) are generally considered no big deal - yet they can be caused by the exact same virus.

 

This is not to say that you shouldn't pursue testing if you are high risk, but it's important to know the limitations of testing for herpes and why your doctor will most likely say no if you ask for it. Before you invest time and money into getting tested you should also consider what the possible outcomes are and if testing positive would change your behaviour in any way that reduces risk or if it would just stress you out a lot.

[Sasha Stone 521]

Usually Herpes testing is only done when an outbreak is present and a health worker will take a swabbing of the area for definitive test results. There is blood work that can be done but it was explained to me at Sheldon Chumir Sti Clinic that they refrain from doing it because it is costly. I think by knowing how Herpes transmits it's easier to prepare yourself to best avoid contracting it. Things like a low immune system, extra weight, lack of sleep, having another sti/std already, breaks in the skin can all leave a person vulnerable to picking up any sti/std during intercourse.

 

I really like that there is a health section on this board, it's important to be aware of our sexual healths.