Hi Dr. Bob,

I tried to post this question yesterday, but perhaps it did not go through. I am a gay male who performed oral sex on a guy 8 days ago (Sunday) and found out a couple of days ago he his HIV +. He did not ejaculate in my mouth, but rather pulled out and ejaculated on my face, lips, and a little got in my mouth which I spit out. 3 or 4 days later, I began suffering from a sore throat and swollen neck glands which have only gotten worse to date. I can barely swallow. Also, I have started a fever and night sweats and chills beginning 2 days ago. I understand the risk of 1 in 10,000 regarding performing oral sex on an HIV + male, but would ARS symptoms show up within a week of exposure? By the way, a throat culture has ruled out strep throat, which now concerns me the culprit is a virus and could be primary HIV. Thanks for your attention.

Hi,

In general, the symptoms associated with HIV acute retroviral syndrome (ARS) begin two to three weeks after infection with the virus; however, there is some variability from person to person.

Oral sex carries only a low risk for HIV transmission/acquisition.

The odds are all in your favor that HIV is not the cause of your current symptoms.

Dr. Bob