A service provided by the BC Centre for Disease Control
In the years since SmartSexResource launched, we have developed a library of questions asked by you, and answered by our expert sexual health nurses.
Our answered questions library cover a broad range of sexual health topics and common questions we hear at our clinics.
Hi there, thank you for your question.
No, pus on the tonsils does not necessarily indicate a sexually transmitted infection (STI). Chlamydia and gonorrhea of the throat are actually most often asymptomatic.
Pus on the tonsils is usually caused by commonly passed viruses. If you are concerned, you could visit your family doctor for an assessment. And if you have an elevated chance of getting an STI in the throat (ie. you are a person who gives oral sex to a person with a penis) then you could ask your doctor to test for chlamydia and gonorrhea of the throat to rule those out.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thank you for writing in
Unfortunately I am not able to diagnose what might be going on over the internet. However, I would definitely recommend that you see a family doctor or a physician at a walk-in clinic for a thorough assessment.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thank you for your question
If an individual has a fever and other symptoms associated with HIV seroconversion, they may experience some mild relief with paracetamol (acetaminophen) however, this will not cure the symptoms, nor will it cure the virus.
If you are concerned about an HIV infection, the best thing for you to do would be to visit a health care provider (family doctor, walk-in clinic, or a sexual health clinic) and get an HIV test. If you are living in British Columbia, have a look at our Clinic Finder to locate a clinic in your area.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thank you for your question
I’m not sure where you got tested and treated, however in British Columbia the recommended treatment for epididymitis is cefixime and doxycycline. Treatment with ciprofloxacin is supported by the Canadian guidelines.
If your symptoms are persisting, I would revisit your care provider. Further assessment may be required, including a referral to a specialist to rule out other causes of your symptoms, especially given that your chlamydia and gonorrhea tests were negative.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thank you for your question
Mycoplasma genitalium is a bacterium that can be sexually transmitted and in some instances can cause urethral symptoms in men, but often is asymptomatic. Many individuals carry this bacteria around normally and suffer no symptoms or harm from it, so we typically don’t test for it routinely.
There are many things that can cause urethral symptoms in men, or individuals with a penis. Those things can include sexually transmitted bacteria including chlamyida, gonorrhea and herpes. Non-sti microbes, such as the virus that causes the common cold passed through oral sex, can also cause these symptoms and are also harmless. Other irritants can include soaps, detergents, dehydration, yeast and fungal infections, and increased alcohol intake or nicotine use.
If all things are ruled out and urethral symptoms are persistent and bothersome, then certainly you could ask your family doctor for testing for mycoplasma.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thanks for your question
While it’s not possible to diagnose what is going on over the internet it sounds very much like you may have something called Bacterial Vaginosis (BV).
BV is not a sexually transmitted infection (STI) but rather an imbalance of the healthy bacteria that normally lives in the vagina. When these bacteria get out of balance, symptoms can occur. These symptoms are commonly described as a fishy odor and an increased amount of watery, thin vaginal discharge (You didn’t specify in your question, but I am assuming that you are a person with a vagina. If I have gotten that wrong, please forgive the assumption).
BV can be very easily treated with a 1-week course of an antibiotic called metronidazole. You can visit any walk-in clinic or sexual health clinic for assessment, diagnosis and treatment. I would recommend a full STI screen for HIV, syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea as well as testing for BV as sometimes STIs can also cause these symptoms.
Have a look at our page on Bacterial Vaginosis for more information. To help locate a sexual health clinic in your area, you can use our Clinic Finder.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thank you for your question
It would be pretty unusual to develop symptoms of an STI that quickly after possibly being exposed. A very likely culprit of the soreness you felt might have been due to friction and not enough lubrication during insertive sex. Sometimes adding some extra lubricant can really help with comfort and with preventing damage to the skin such as small tears.
I don’t know what the discharge might have been, but it can be common to have some irritation to the urethra after having sex. During intercourse there are lots of microbes (non-harmful, normal healthy bacteria) that can be passed between partners. While these microbes don’t necessarily cause an infection they can get up into the urethra and cause some irritation. Staying well hydrated, urinating frequently (especially right after sex) and drinking cranberry juice or taking some cranberry supplements can help with this discomfort.
Finally, yes some STIs could be passed from your finger’s to a male partner’s genitals, if your fingers had been touching your own genitals first and there is an infection already present. The most common things would be infections passed through skin to skin contact such as HPV, herpes or even syphilis. So for example, if a person has an active herpes outbreak on their genitals and touches the sores, then immediately touches their partner’s genitals, it would be possible to pass that infection to the partner.
You might find our STIs at a Glance chart helpful as it gives a quick overview of how different infections are passed.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thanks for your question
Yes, the window period (the time between when a person comes in contact with a sexually transmitted infection and when the STI will show up on a test) for HIV using the 4th Generation HIV Antibody test is 3 months (90 days). This means that if you have a negative, or non-reactive, test more than 90 days after the exposure you do not have HIV.
The reason that HIV antibodies have not been detected in your case is presumably because you do not have HIV.
The symptoms you are describing are not specific to HIV and could be attributed to any number of different causes. If you are concerned about the symptom, you could revisit your family doctor to discuss the symptoms themselves, knowing that your HIV test is negative.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi, and thanks for your question
It sounds like you got a very thorough set of testing done. With negative results at 1 and 3 months, you can be reassured that the tests are accurate as the window periods for any infection have passed. The window period is the time between when a person comes in contact with a sexually transmitted infection (STI) and when the STI will show up on a test.
We often forget that the skin on our genitals is just like the skin on the rest of our bodies and there are any number of things besides STI’s that can cause irritation and rashes. Just because it’s on the genitals doesn’t mean it’s automatically an STI!
Things like dehydration, alcohol, nicotine and soaps/detergents can causes irritation to the urethra which can result in a discomfort when urinating. Soaps and detergents can also cause irritation or rash on the skin of the scrotum.
That being said, if these symptoms have been there for a couple of months and are not resolving, then I would recommend visiting a walk-in clinic or family doctor for a full assessment. You really don’t need to go to a sexual health clinic, as they will likely repeat the tests which you’ve already had. It would be worth having a physician assess. Without knowing which area you’re in I can’t really recommend a specific clinic. However, you should be able to find a walk-in clinic near you with a quick internet search.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse
Hi and thanks for your question
Yes, it is possible to have pain with no discharge with an STI. In fact, most STIs can have a variety of symptoms ranging from every classic symptom, some possible symptoms, and commonly no symptoms at all.
If you are sexually active, we recommend visiting a clinic to be tested for sexually transmitted infections including HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia.
Have a look at our Clinic Finder to locate a clinic in your area
You might also like our STIs at a Glance chart which gives an overview of many STIs and the possible symptoms associated with them.
Let us know if this does not answer your question or if you have any more questions or concerns.
Health Nurse