A friend of a friend who is a nurse got accidently stuck the other day with a used needle at work.  The hospital he works for has a great policy about when to get tested, get retested and they even provide psychological support.  However, when should regular folk get tested?  Whether you shared a dirty needle or slept with someone nasty this should be your personal policy. 

HIV Virus Invading a Cell

First things first, get an HIV test asap.  Even if the event occurred yesterday, it is a good idea to make sure you can establish that you were HIV negative before the event.  This question will constantly be on your mind if you do show up HIV positive.  Doubt will creep in your mind, and you will wake up in a panic at the thought that you may have spread the HIV virus unknowingly to others.  If you show up HIV positive, it is your business only and I doubt you want to hunt down everyone you have ever been with to alert them that you are HIV positive and that they may be as well.  Additionally, the first thing that will happen when you tell someone they gave you HIV is that they will deny it.  For your wellbeing as well as others, get this test as soon as possible. 

If you live in the Dallas area, I suggest you get tested at Any Lab Test Now in Plano, TX.  It only costs $39 with a coupon.  You can give them an alias, no appointment needed, and your results are ready in 2 business days.  You may be waiting 2 weeks or more if you go to your physician or a free clinic.  Regardless of where you get tested, expect to get a call when your results are ready.  This is required by law and does not mean you are HIV pos or HIV neg.

Your next test should be 30 days from the possible transmission.  HIV tests actually look for antibodies, not the virus itself.  It takes 2 to 8 weeks for these antibodies to be produced to a measurable amount.  This 30-day test is more of a possible early detection HIV test.  A negative HIV test does not put you in the clear.  It just gives you a little piece of mind.  Do not give into fears if you have weight-loss, weird bumps/pimples or night sweats.  It is too early to get symptoms.

Your best early detection HIV tests comes around 90 days.  This test is common in most hospital policies for accidental sticks.  If you get an HIV negative result then, it is pretty safe to say you are in the clear. 

It is also advisable to get a yearly HIV test even if you have not been in a high risk category.  If you have learned anything from your scare it should be that early detection and public awareness is essential in battling HIV. 

 If you are HIV positive, do not think your life is over.  Currently, there are medications that can keep the virus so low it can not even be detected.  There are millions upon millions of research dollars being put towards HIV research.  It won’t be long before someone finds a vaccine or cure.

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Although HIV rates have continued to rise, it has not reached the epidemic prophesied in the 1980’s.  HIV rates have disproportionally affected homosexual men ages 33-37yrs old.  This statistic also holds true for Dallas County.  Residents with the highest HIV rates are located in Central Dallas extending to the Northwest and Southeast parts of the county. 

Performing a zip code to zip code ethnic analysis of Dallas County I found a direct correlation to the percentage of African American residents and HIV infection rates.  This also holds true for Hispanics.  However, there is a decrease in HIV infection rates as the percentage of Caucasians in a zip code increases.

 The amount of household income continues to play a key role in HIV rates.  As the household income of a zip code decreases the percentage of those infected with HIV and AIDS increases.

 I also noticed a correlation between HIV prevalence rate and the average level of education.  It seems residents living in the highest infected area have an average of only a 9^th grade education. 

So what does all this mean and how can you and I do about it?  I do not feel simply moving to a less infected area will help solve or even reduce the problem.  Look at these statistics as symptoms of the problem.  The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has performed numerous studies that have lead to the conclusion that public awareness will make the biggest difference.  It is estimated that someone is infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) every 9 ½ minutes. 

 Are you or someone you know living with HIV?  What is your opinion?  Would education young children on what HIV is and how it is contracted help?

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Often self-diagnosed as mouth herpes or mouth warts, circumvallate papillae are the v-shaped bumps on the back of the tongue.   

V-Shaped Bumps on Tongue

The circumvallate papillae (or vallate papillae) are of large size (dome-shaped structures), and vary from eight to twelve in number.  Below is a picture that may help remedy the paranoid.  They can vary in size. 

This clarification does not mean you do not have a STD either.  Most sexually transmitted diseases often go undetected but are still very contagious.  It may be time for you and your partner to get a comprehensive STD test.  This website is sponsored by Any Lab Test Now in Plano, TX and we endorse them.  Apart from having the best price in the North Dallas area you can give a fake name and are not required to provide identification.  If you are embarrassed about getting tested you will love it that they can get you in-and-out within 15 minutes from the moment you walk in the door, and you results are ready in 24-48hrs.

Having gonorrhea of the mouth is a humbling experience, but does not mean you are dirty or slutty.  Statistically 1 in 3 sexually active people have had a STD at some point in their life.  And age isn’t a factor.  Strangely enough there are an increasing percentage of elderly people finding out they have an STD.  It seems this age group doesn’t like using condoms either. 

Do not wait to get tested.  It is common for many people to get a mouth STD symptom and talk themselves out of getting tested when the symptoms go away.  This can even be deadly if the STD is syphilis.  Left untreated syphilis can eventually lead to death. 

Symptoms of mouth STDs that should send you to get tested include:

• Sore throat
• Swollen glands
• Strange coating on tongue
• Thrush, also called oral candidiasis, is a yeast infection of the mouth
• Gum Infections may be early symptom of AIDS, and can include painful ulcers that bleed and ooze pus
• Lesions – usually caused by genital herpes
• Warts or the cheeks, gums or throat
• Oral Cancer can be a symptom of HPV

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Dallas Chlamydia Rates

Chlamydia Facts

• Chlamydia, aka Chlamydia trachomatis, is a sexually transmitted disease (STD)
• Chlamydia is the most common STD reported in the Dallas area
• Symptoms or signs of chlamydia may be mild or absent.
• Chlamydia can cause infertility and other serious complications.
• Chlamydia of the throat, mouth chlamydia, can occur by having oral sex with an infected partner.

What is the prevalence of chlamydia in Dallas?

Chlamydia is the most frequently reported bacterial sexually transmitted disease in the Dallas area. Even so, cases are under-reported because most people with chlamydia do not have any symptoms. The CDC estimates there are 2,291,000 silent carriers of chlamydia in the United States.

Can you get chlamydia without sexual contact?

Medical research has shown chlamydia is not transmitted without sexual contact. Chlamydia of the mouth is not common but can occur. Statistically, chlamydia is highly transmittable, and re-infection from untreated sexual partners is very common. It is also possible for chlamydial infection of the cervix to spread to the rectum.

What does chlamydia look like on a woman?

Chlamydia is known as a silent disease because about three quarters of infected women have no symptoms. If symptoms do occur, they usually appear within 1 to 3 weeks after exposure.Symptoms include:

• Abnormal vaginal/anal discharge or bleeding
• Burning sensation when urinating
• Lower abdominal pain
• Low back pain
• Nausea
• Fever
• Pain during intercourse
• Bleeding between menstrual periods

What does chlamydia look like on a man?

About half of infected men have no symptoms of chlamydia. If symptoms do occur, they usually appear within 1 to 3 weeks after exposure.

Symptoms include:

• Discharge from penis
• Burning sensation when urinating
• Burning and itching around the opening of the penis
• Rectal pain, discharge, or bleeding.

Is it true that previous chlamydia can cause problems with pregnancy?

If untreated, chlamydial infections can progress to serious reproductive and other health problems with both short-term and long-term consequences. Like the disease itself, the damage that chlamydia causes is often silent.In women, untreated infection can spread into the uterus or fallopian tubes and cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). This happens in up to 40 percent of women with untreated chlamydia. PID can cause permanent damage to the fallopian tubes, uterus, and surrounding tissues. The damage can lead to chronic pelvic pain, infertility, and potentially fatal ectopic pregnancy (pregnancy outside the uterus). All pregnant women should have a screening test for chlamydia.

How is chlamydia diagnosed?

There are laboratory tests to diagnose chlamydia. Some can be performed on urine, other tests require that a specimen be collected from a site such as the penis or cervix.

Is there a cure for chlamydia?

Chlamydia can be easily treated and cured with antibiotics. Persons with chlamydia should abstain from sexual intercourse until they and their sex partners have completed treatment, otherwise re-infection is possible.Re-infection increases a woman’s risk of infertility and other serious reproductive health complications. Retesting should be encouraged for women three to four months after treatment.

 

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