Hi Dr Bob, thanks for educating me on hiv. (obviously I read the safe sex part too late!). I had regular unprotected anal penetrations from my ex partner over a 4 year period. He claimed he was neg, right until he collapsed (he had, by then, a tcell count of 24). He told me it was out of control diabetes (I'm gullible). Anyway, I was tested Dec 5 and was neg, I'm going to retest in March, which will be 14 weeks after my last exposure. I do remember you saying that the odds changed after repeated hiv + exposures. Should I delay the retest or just continue to retest every 3 months for a while? Regards Steve

Hi Steve,

The estimated per-episode risk for acquiring HIV from unprotected receptive anal sex with an HIV-positive partner is 50 per 10,000 exposures. This estimated risk is per episode. You've had a very significant HIV exposure; consequently, we would recommend testing immediately, at three months and, if still negative, again at the six-month mark. Your initial negative test is encouraging, considering you were repeatedly exposed over a four-year period and your partner was not on antiretroviral drugs to lower his viral load. Let's hope your luck holds out for your three- and six-month tests. I'll send my best good-luck karma, OK? I'm here if you need me.

Good luck.

Dr. Bob