Question:
Background: I'm 45, female. I had a partner with herpes when I was 19, in 1981. He had contracted it a few years earlier and no longer had outbreaks. We used condoms whenever he thought he might be possibly getting an outbreak; I don't think he actually did. I assumed I did not contract herpes from him because I never had symptoms.

After that, I was in three monogamous relationships that totaled 25 years. I did not use condoms. My partners and I had no herpes symptoms.

When the second LTR ended in 1996, I think I had a herpes test done (in 1997). I remember blood was drawn, and asking for herpes to be included in the tests [by this time, asymptomatic shedding was being talked about]. The hospital later said everything was fine, but I don't have anything showing what tests were done: could have been just syphilis.

LTR number three lasted eight years, 1997-2005. We were monogamous and did not use condoms. Neither of us ever had herpes symptoms.

Yesterday, I thought I had never contracted an STD from a partner.

Tonight, I'm freaking out because my doctor informed me I have antibodies for HSV-2. My test was yesterday [I was negative for HSV-1]. I'm baffled. Does this mean I have HSV-2? If so, I'm guessing I developed the antibodies when I was 19, and that I wasn't actually tested for it in 1997 [or that it was a false negative?] Or could it mean my last partner was an asymptomatic shedder, and, improbably, so am I?

Is it possible I could have had the virus since 1981 and not given it to my partners, during 25 years of unprotected sex?

My plan right now is to have another test done, and to contact my medical provider to see if they can find the results of the 1997 test.

Does anyone have any advice? Should I contact my past partners and tell them I may have given them HSV-2, even though none of us had symptoms?

I'm astounded that a health problem that affects millions has so much conflicting and confusing information. You'd think there would be tests that could answer my questions. I am completely...

--baffled

Answer:
Reading about other people's tests, it seems strange that my doctor called me back with results after only one day. It seems most people have to wait three days or even longer.

Answer:
i was told that blood test is unable to tell if u have Herpes I or II. only the test done by extracting the fluid from the blister. But its clear that Hrpes I is cold sore & II is genital herpes....

Answer:
It is actually quite possible that you conntracted this disease 25 years ago...........it happens to thousands of people this way. Especially since the virus can be contracted undetectably if no symptoms occur, which is why it is such a silent disease that is often extrememly misunderstood with the line"you'd know if you had herpes" which just isnt true. The fact that 25 years ago people didnt know a lot about the virus and thought abstaining from sex when havng outbreaks was enough is how millions of people ended up getting this virus and not knowing it until many years later. shedding has always been occuring, even 25 years ago so the likelihood you got it then and it just went into your nerves undetected is pretty good.


Other things to know is that even if you did contract it 25 years ago, which is very likely, the virus would have gone into the nerves and all this time you have had herpes and may or may not have given it to one of your other partners because herpes is not contagious every day when you dont have symptoms so its a game of chance and odds really. You may have infected all of them unknowingly, one or two of them unknowingly, or none by some lucky chance. The current studies done recently that Ive read state that almost 80% of all new infections occur when people have no symptoms or when their partners have no clue they have it and are asymptomatic, so that says something about shedding and carrying the virus unknowingly. However, it really is a game of chance and since every day of your life you were not contagious you may or may not have given any of these guys the virus. Its hard to imagine none of them would have got it, but you really might have just been lucky and not had sexual contact when you were shedding periodically.

I also have a theory about when people dont have any idea they have this, they dont have any stress concerning it or sexual activity, which is yet another reason why it may not flare up asymptomatically as much, versus when people become aware of it their whole mind changes, their lives change, and they forever are different and the stress of that alone can cause shedding or visible symptoms.

Basically, if I were you, I would contact all the former partners, since it is only a few and tell them the knews......also tell them the whole story and it will be their responsibility to go get tested if they give a shit about their own health or the potential health of future or current partners. They are all adults and if they care they will get tested to find out. You might find it is a case of where one or two have it and like you, have never had a clue all this time.

As for you, the answer is yes, you have herpes, and have had herpes for an unknown period of time. If you have a positive test for antibodies in the blood, it means you have contracted the virus at some point in your life. But remember, you have had this a while, at least several years, and you have been the same person you've always felt you were so learning this shouldnt change that much, it just means now you have an obligation to inform potential partners about your knew found knowlegde and hopefully you will continue to not get outbreaks, but just know there will always be the potential to give it to others and its up to you to do the right thing. I know this is long but I felt you deserved a well thought out response.

PS- before telling all other partners I would try and get the records from 1997 and if negative at that point id only tell the partners during that year and after about it,....but if you cant find it or find you were not tested via blood for herpes specifically then I would definitely tell all past partners. It sucks that people know so little about the virus, when it spreads so silently sometimes, so rapidly,.....its sad people only hang out to this association of the possibility of having herpes has to mean you have horrible blisters all over your genitals......becuase more times than not that is not the case for millions of people. Hope this helped a bit.

Answer:
Also, if you've never had symptoms, it may be difficult to know if you have oral or genital herpes. As Floraa doesn't understand, HSV-1 doesn't affect JUST your mouth and HSV-2 JUST genitally. Either can appear in either place, and unless you have an outbreak, you may never know for sure.

Answer:
Thanks very much, BoxofRain. I called my medical care provider and found they use the Plexus HerpeSelect 1and 2 IgG test, which is fast and accurate. It was approved only this year. I trust that the diagnosis of antibodies for HSV-2 is correct.

It truly is a silent epidemic. While it's possible I was exposed in 1981, it's also possible any of my three partners afterwards had it without knowing, and gave it to me.

I broke the news to a man I started dating just two months ago, and he took it like a champ. I hope people who are feeling despair after a new diagnosis take comfort in this; they won't be judged as harshly as they think.

It's going to be hard to track down the 1997 test, and the results may be unhelpful, so I'll be contacting my last partner regardless. I believe he has a girlfriend who is only thirty, still child-bearing age; they both need to be tested ASAP.

I told all my partners beforehand I had been exposed to HSV-2, although I had never had symptoms, so I feel about a thousand times better than I might otherwise.

This might be strange, but what I'm feeling right now is gratitude for having an immune system that prevented me from ever having an outbreak. I've always known I have a great immune system. The last 26 years could have been a nightmare of outbreaks and suffering for me.

While I definitely know I have HSV-2, I do not know if I have it orally or genitally, and there is no way to find out, because I have no outbreaks; apparently the only way to know for sure is to test a lesion. If I have it orally, it seems that may be one reason why I had no detectable symptoms, and why I (possibly) did not pass it on to my partners. I'm suspecting the oral form, because not having HSV-1 at my age is rare. If I got HSV-2 orally in 1981, it would provide immunity to the oral form of HSV-1.

Sheesh. It's so complex, and there are so many ifs. How do you people do it? :D

Answer:
Just to throw this in.

If you've never had symptoms and never had an ob. Who is to say that your infection is actually in an expected location. It could be on your elbow or anywhere else on your body for that matter. It also could have been a very minor exposure that doesn't produce much of an ob if active.

Have you ever in your life had a rash of any type?

I know this mixes it up but to assume that mystery hsv2 infections are always genital is to not accept that random events can actually occur.

I think it's great that you've had a habit of disclosure.

Answer:
I have never had a rash anywhere. You are right, it might be in an unexpected location. I had a friend who had outbreaks at the base of his spine [although that isn't really all that odd].

Another possibility: HSV-2 infected my nose and/or throat, which are connected by sinus passages. When I was a child, I put a bean in my nose. Yes, I was one of those idiots. It was undetected for decades, because my immune system minimized the impact; typically, it's immediately apparent because there is a massive infection. I did, however, have frequent sore throats and similar problems until the bean [by that time a rock made of calcium] was removed. If I contracted HSV-2 in my mouth, throat, or nose, the problems caused by my long term sinus obstruction could easily have masked the initial outbreak, if there was one.

It's too bad there is no way to tell if my case is active, or where it's located.

Answer:
Just confirmed no test for HSV was done in 1997, even though I gave blood for it, and requested it. They tested my blood only for syphilis. I'm pissed.