std testing

[Willing and Unsure]

i think i want to have my boyfriend get checked for std's. where should he go to have that done?

 

[cymbidia]

He's already agreed to this testing, right?
It's not something you can do to him without his consent and/or knowledge.

So,
1. Call Planned Parenthood (find a # in the business section of your phone book) to make an an appointment for him. They use a sliding fee scale; you pay what you can afford to pay. Please pay a little extra for all those who need the services PP offers but cannot afford to pay anything at all. This option is low-cost and can be anonymous.

2. Call your local city or state health department (find a listing in the Government pages of your phone book) and ask them where inexpensive, preferably anonymous STD testing can be done. Every reasonably-sized place will offer such a service as part of the community health services infrastructure.

3. Go to see your local doc for the testing. This is the most expensive option, even with health insurance, and the results - and the mere fact that it's being requested, will be a part of his medical records for a very long time.

 

[Willing and Unsure]

i know he has to agree to it... and i'm pretty sure he will if i ask.. just the cost thing is what will get him in the end and i know it.. and thanks for the suggestions Cym.. i will be sure to fill him in on all this.

 

[Pan718]

The public health clinic will be affordable and can either do it or refer him to the local clinic for testing.

Good that you're doing this... Unsure

 

[Trinka]

It sounds like you may have not talked to him about this yet. I would suggest the both of you going in together to get tested.

 

[Willing and Unsure]

It sounds like you may have not talked to him about this yet. I would suggest the both of you going in together to get tested.

i was tested recently when i had a gyno exam.. and i know i'm clean.. but i would like for him to get tested. and i have talked to him about this since i posted this thread, and he is willing to do it. neither of us have much money and are looking to find the cheapest place to have it done at. i've been looking around lots of different places all day trying to find something that we will be able to afford (i offered to pay for part of it since it was my idea and he doesnt have much money).

 

[christophe]

i would recomend a free clinic, or a teaching hospital that has residents. many of these will provide good quality care at little to no cost. the only drawback is you are treated by a "new" doctor. there is nothing wrong with this as they are all supervised.

find a list of hospitals in your area, and then call them to find out if it is a teaching hospital with a resident staff in internal medicine or family practice. if they have these programs then find out their clinic phone number and schedule an appt.

if you suspect he has a std, and even though your last exam was "clean" please take necessary precautions until results are known.

women especially if they do contract a std the symptoms may not be as pronounced or even present. it can develop into a serious condition known as pelvic inflammatory disease which if untreated can cause future gynecologic problems

the most common forms of std'd that are easily treated are gonnarhea and clamydia. both are caused by bacteria and respond very well to drugs such as cipro, tetracycline doxycycline and penicillin based drugs.

more serious stds include syphillis and herpes.

even if u are dubbed cleanand your boyfriend is as well you may consider testing for hiv and hepatitis c...to be on the safe side!

i hope this info prives helpful

 

[Willing and Unsure]

i dont suspect he has an std. i just started wondering if he had ever been tested, and i figured he should if he hadnt been before, for my safety and his. the main reason i started to wonder is because i've overheard my roomie and her boyfriend talking about this and i think he might have one (or something like that) and it got me thinking some. the only reason i dont suspect mine having an std is because he always uses a condom, not just with me, but with any girl he has ever been with (not that many).

i cant get hepatitis anyway. i have had the immunization shots for it and my doctor said that there is a .002% chance of me getting it. i may have the hiv test done anyway, and tag along with him when he goes (which i'll probably tag along anyway).

but the teaching hospital is a good idea. thanks christophe

 

[christophe]

the only vaccines available for hepatitis currntly is hepatitis b there are several types A B and C then there are AB and the list goes on.

there is no vaccine for hepatits C unfortunatley and this is the one that is on the rise. it is prelevent in individuals who have had transfusions and are iv drug users. agian the chances are small u would get this given common sense precautions and as long as you dont fall into a high risk category.

does your boyfriend exhibit symptoms of an std or is this just for piece of mind.

in men gonnorhea and clamydia ususally have very obvious symptoms such as apin with urination and yellow discharge form the penis. if untreated these can lead to a painful condition known as prostatitis.

again i hope this helps u out

cheers chris

 

[Guest]

its really me, i'm not at my puter, and i dont remember my password

its more for piece of mind, and my doctor had informed me when i had the hepatitis b vaccine that there is one for hepatitis a as well, and he did suggest that anyone that travels outside the country to get it. i dont know much about hepatitis c or ever heard of it for that matter.


and thanks again. you are helping a lot.. some of us are rather confused at times...

 

[christophe]

glad you found the info helpful. if you have anyfurther questioins let me know. thats what i am here for...to serve protect and answer your medical related questions

 

[lovetoread]

glad you found the info helpful. if you have anyfurther questioins let me know. thats what i am here for...to serve protect and answer your medical related questions

Oh my Christophe,

Do you know how many lines of really bad things I could post here after reading your offer to help?

Such as;

I have this itch......

<joke!>

 

[BlondGirl]

Down here where I work at, my clinic does the blood testing for various companies around the area. (We have lots and lots of transients coming through.) I also had the testing when I began full time. I got copies of my labs last week and was surprised to find HIV as one of the things I was tested for as well as my liver function and other goodies.
If he has changed jobs recently, he coupld possibly have had some of the testing already done. (Wal-mart here does the same screening.)
(BTW--The testing that was done for me and that is chosen by many of the companies is a full battery of tests--it came out to approx 8 pages of results including one full page of drug screen. I was not even sure what some of those they tested me for were!)

 

[lovetoread]

Did you give permission for all the tests, or was it something they did while they had some of your blood?

Oh and I hope all the tests came back okay.

 

[christophe]

Oh my Christophe,

Do you know how many lines of really bad things I could post here after reading your offer to help?

Such as;

I have this itch......

<joke!>

hmmmmmmmmm this seems to be an itchy kinda of place i think.

 

[Azwed]

Down here where I work at, my clinic does the blood testing for various companies around the area. (We have lots and lots of transients coming through.) I also had the testing when I began full time. I got copies of my labs last week and was surprised to find HIV as one of the things I was tested for as well as my liver function and other goodies.
If he has changed jobs recently, he coupld possibly have had some of the testing already done. (Wal-mart here does the same screening.)
(BTW--The testing that was done for me and that is chosen by many of the companies is a full battery of tests--it came out to approx 8 pages of results including one full page of drug screen. I was not even sure what some of those they tested me for were!)

I didn't think they could give you the HIV test without express written consent??

 

[Willing and Unsure]

Did you give permission for all the tests, or was it something they did while they had some of your blood?

Oh and I hope all the tests came back okay.

they had my permission to do it.. and it was fine with me.. and all of my tests came back ok.. dont know about his yet, cuz he still has to go (we've still got to find a place with reasonable cost and all that)

 

[Summery]

Well, you have recieved already a lot of good sound advice.

I don't know where you live W&U....but most cities, including the small one in which I live, have "planned parenthood."

They charge based on a sliding fee scale. If you don't have any income it is absolutely free & confidential.

 

[Aphrodisiac]

Do you attend a university or college?

Simply go to the health building & ask ... the majority of school's offer free std testing on campus.

 

[PacificBlue]

My thoughts on STD testing...

Great idea...I think everyone should do this if they are sexually active and preferably before having sex so they know what they are dealing with.

1. Condoms do not protect you 100% from getting genital herpes (hsv) or genital warts (hpv) because they don't cover all the skin where the virus might shed from in the boxer short area.

2. If you boyfriend has a history of cold sores/fever blisters and he gives you oral sex you could get genital herpes even if he doesn't have a sore on his mouth at the time. The reverse is also true if you have a history of them and give him oral sex. This happens during periods of asymtomatic shedding.

3. A typical STD screen at the gynecologist usually only covers chlamydia, gonorrhea, and genital warts. So when you ask someone to get screened for STDs or you ask for an STD screen you need to ask for specifics.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

the only vaccines available for hepatitis currntly is hepatitis b there are several types A B and C then there are AB and the list goes on.

there is no vaccine for hepatits C unfortunatley and this is the one that is on the rise.

Agreed. I used to work in the software department of a company that makes the immunoassays (the tests) for STDs and other blood borne pathogens, and there are a lot of variations of Hepatitis (non A, Non B, yada, yada), and there is no vaccine for Hep C. If there was we would have been vaccinated as we had to deal with the virus all the time (I didn't, but the researchers did). We had enough HIV and Hep C to infect a major part of the country growing in our labs, and while we were careful around the HIV, it was the Hepatitis that was really a lot more dangerous as it lives outside the human body for a long time and is very infectious.

I was tested for the various STDs (and drug use, and a load of other things) when I took that job. It was protection for the company so I couldn't claim I caught something there if I actually had it before.

It is a simple blood test, and they are getting cheaper every day. The actual cost of the materials is like in the pennies per test (about 4 cents each IIRC), but all the handling and paying of people to take the blood, etc. is what adds the cost, and of course the profit.

 

[christophe]

having worked in several major teaching hospitals i can honestly say over the years hepatitis b is falling by the way side. at first it was a common occurrence to see someone with it. but with the advent of proper vaccinations it is starting to decline.

now we have hepatits c it is becoming very common. unfortunatley it is..in my opinion worse than its predecessors. it is primarily contracted thru sexual contact...iv drug users...hemophiliacs and unfortunatley thru blood transfusioins. this nasty little virus can lie dormant for years before it becomes active. an individual can take necessary precautions to avoid contracting it. and if there is any doubt, as shy mentioned, a simple blood test can be done to alleviate ones fears.