Does dry mouth and white patches indicate HIV infection?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 38-year-old male. I was exposed to HIV last month. The next day, I felt tired and went to urgent care. They checked me and found nothing wrong, but they did blood work. I went back a week later, and they prescribed me PEP. After that, I felt extremely tired and went to the ER twice, but the blood tests did not show anything abnormal. I still feel tired, though not as much as before. However, I have developed new symptoms like dry mouth and white patches for the past two days. Could this be a side effect of the medication, or are these symptoms of HIV?

I am currently taking Emtricitabine along with Tenofovir (TDF) and Dolutegravir tablets.

Please advise.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I have gone through your query and completely understand your concerns.

It is not uncommon to overthink symptoms after experiencing such an unfortunate exposure to the human immunodeficiency virus. It is natural to associate every minor symptom with HIV-related concerns. However, it is too early to draw any conclusions at this stage. The good news is that your fourth-generation test at 14 days came back negative. While it is not highly accurate at this point, it is still a positive indicator for future results.

Your symptoms do not appear to be specific to HIV; they seem more likely to be stress-induced. Medication side effects typically show up in blood tests as abnormalities such as elevated lipid levels or anemia. You can take a fourth-generation HIV test in four weeks, which will provide a conclusive result.

I hope this helps you.

Thank you.

Answer 2

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

The RNA (ribonucleic acid) test for HIV is primarily used to monitor treatment response rather than for diagnosing HIV. Therefore, I would not recommend it in your case. The fourth-generation HIV test detects both the p24 antigen of the virus and the antibodies produced by the body. It uses an amplification method to ensure even the smallest traces are not missed, making it highly sensitive and specific. Its accuracy is very high by the end of three to four weeks, and most recognized HIV testing centers consider it conclusive beyond this period.

However, in cases of very high-risk exposure, you can opt for an ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) test at 12 weeks, as this marks the end of the HIV window period. Any test beyond this point is considered definitive. Furthermore, PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) will not affect your final test result.

Thank you.