jimbrown

Hi everyone

I'm sure you've all read my story or at least bits and peices of it from here...
[url="http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/Forum126/HTML/002984.html"]http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/Forum126/HTML/002984.html[/url]

so there's probably no need to go there again but I got sort of curious and type "HIV symptoms" into [url="http://www.google.com"]www.google.com[/url] and came up with some interesting information.

Ok, first of all, I DID go to the dentist about a month and 1/2 ago and had a molar extracted. Before the oral surgeon did the extraction, I do remember hearing him ask the nurse if she had put something into the autoclave and heard her say "yup". Then I heard him say "good". (not sure if this is significant or not). Anyway, I had the tooth extracted, was sore for awhile, took a course of antibiotics and everything healed up nicely.

About a month and 1/2 later, I get this really sore and swollen throat and go to the doctor who told me it was either bacterial or viral but was not strep (I do have some phelm in my throat and lungs). I also feel a dull pressure in my head and sort of a spacey feeling. When I swallow, it hurts.

Now from what I read about HIV, it seems that the incubation period is from 2-4 weeks, at which point you might get a sore throat along with all kinds of muscle aches and pains, fever, swollen glands, night sweats, etc). Ok, I definately have a sore throat and swollen glands in my throat on the right side and a swollen gland behind my ear on the left side. I don't have any muscle aches and pains, night sweats or high fever but it has been "2-4 weeks" (actually a month and 1/2) since I saw the oral surgeon and he extracted my tooth.

To put things into perspective, I have also been to the ER overnight (once) and been to various clinics about a dozen times since my bout with a UTI so it's possible that I just came into contact with someone down there who was sick and the receptionist also told me that something was "going around" and that other people also had sore throats, etc. I've also taken quite a few courses of antibiotics and other meds which has no doubt lowered my resistance.

The thing is that I am NEVER sick and now for the last 4 days I've had a very sore throat. I'm beginning to wonder what the odds are that I caught something (HIV) at the dentist's office. How safe are dentist's offices these days?. Is there a big risk of HIV when you have a tooth extracted?. Should I be freaking out over this or could it just be that I've contracted something during one of my numerous trips to the various clinics I've been to over the past month and 1/2 (plus the gobs of antibiotics I've been on lately)?. Who would I even approach about this concern?. The dentist?. And what would I say?..."um...excuse me but is it possible that you gave me HIV when you extracted my tooth?".

I'm lost here. Ideas people?. Thank's a bunch. I've just been thinking about this possability lately and not sure what the odds are of something like this happening.

PS: I posted this on the "General" board (which is where I've been hanging out for the past week) but it suddenly occured to me that I should actually be posting this in the "HIV/AIDS" section here so this is why it is double-posted and I apologize for that but I have no way to delete the original post.

- Thank's again people and Peace!

UPDATE: Ever since this morning I now have very soft stools which are looking more and more like diarrhea. I've been taking antibiotics for some time and now predisone but antibiotics don't usually give me diarrhea. Now I AM scared! )-:

[This message has been edited by jimbrown (edited 05-09-2003).]