Hi

It’s great that you went to a health professional to discuss your symptoms. It’s common for people not to notice any symptoms if the herpes simplex virus (HSV) is passed to them. If someone did get HSV symptoms it can appear as the classic clear fluid filled blisters or on some people they may show up as small sores that are barely noticeable.

I don’t know your past medical or sexual history but the sex you have described would have a low chance of passing HSV to you for a number of reasons. It’s unknown if the person has HSV, you used a condom; the person was not having a HSV outbreak.

Hemorrhoids, ingrown hairs and rashes are common conditions for people to have and are mainly caused by non-STI conditions.

The health professional you saw would be the best person to assess if it’s worth taking a HSV swab from the area. This means it can be a bit of a judgement call as to whether it’s worth doing a HSV test. If you are still concerned you could always get a second opinion from a place that specialises in HSV like an STI clinic. As most STI don’t show symptoms we always recommend that people go for STI testing on a regular basis if there is a chance something could have passed.

Have a look at our “Know your chances” web page, it provides information on your chances of getting or passing an STI depending on how you are having sex.

Have a look at our HSV page for more information on HSV.

Have a look at our worry page for some helpful tips when being worried about STI.

Please leave a comment to let us know if this answers your question or if you need more information.

Health Nurse