Syphilis Question

[Cutedelicategay]

This long weekend I had mind blowing sex with a friend I ran into at a gay bar. He mentioned to me that he was infected with syphilis in March 2018 with titre of 1:32 and treated since. His last test in November 2018 was 1:8 which was 4 fold decline in titres and the doctor declared him cured. His recent test as of last week after November 2018 test showed titre to be 1:16 which is 2 fold increase. The norm is that a person is syphilis positive if there is 4 fold titre increase. I already had my test fir syphilis negative as of beginning of February this year. 

I am really concerned about opportunistic infections and I have booked my doctor's appointment for first week of Mach. My question is how did a 4 fold decline increase 2 fold? Does this mean he is still infected to pass syphilis to me? Of course I am not expecting medical responses unless there is a medical health professional on this forum but out of your experience and research please help me calm down. My research says a 4 fold increase from last titre is infection or reinfection.

[Guest GoneFishing]

1 hour ago, Cutedelicategay said:

This long weekend I had mind blowing sex with a friend I ran into at a gay bar. He mentioned to me that he was infected with syphilis in March 2018 with titre of 1:32 and treated since. His last test in November 2018 was 1:8 which was 4 fold decline in titres and the doctor declared him cured. His recent test as of last week after November 2018 test showed titre to be 1:16 which is 2 fold increase. The norm is that a person is syphilis positive if there is 4 fold titre increase. I already had my test fir syphilis negative as of beginning of February this year. 

I am really concerned about opportunistic infections and I have booked my doctor's appointment for first week of Mach. My question is how did a 4 fold decline increase 2 fold? Does this mean he is still infected to pass syphilis to me? Of course I am not expecting medical responses unless there is a medical health professional on this forum but out of your experience and research please help me calm down. My research says a 4 fold increase from last titre is infection or reinfection.

It means he never got the shots. Should be detected only at 1.1 if he got the penicillin.  He’s highly charged. Get your shots.  

[Cutedelicategay]

I have seen his results. If he didn't get his shots his titre would not have dropped to 1:8. I have confirmed his 1:32 so of course there is a decline and hence he is not lying about his treatment. Of course I am going to the doctor.

[Guest GoneFishing]

1 hour ago, Cutedelicategay said:

I have seen his results. If he didn't get his shots his titre would not have dropped to 1:8. I have confirmed his 1:32 so of course there is a decline and hence he is not lying about his treatment. Of course I am going to the doctor.

Get fixed up and get back out there !

occupational hazard lol

[scott0882]

I caught syphilis before started off at 1:64 and down to 1:8 at 3 months follow up with treatment. 6 months later it was 1:4, then 1:2 before non-reactive. I would believe that he may have caught syphilis again which can happen. 

[Guest Subpowerbottom]

He’s probably reinfected. Happened to me once. Got my number down....jumped back up later, doc said I had contracted it again. Retreated me. 

[RawChad]

That's what I think, too.  I've had syph multiple times and the second time the chancre on my cock never appeared (which is how I knew to go to the clinic the first time I had it--there was a big red spot on the end of my cock).  Second time that didn't happen, it just showed up on STI screen.  So it's a reinfection which does happen and like Charged Up said, is an occupational hazard especially for us bottoms.  The funny thing was the first time the PA was so sure I had gotten the sore and the infection from topping bare and just wouldn't believe me when I said I was sure my cock hadnt been inside any other assholes bare or wrapped lolol.

[LuciferSubFagPig]

Little busy with things, and will share the weird thing with my last one where one told me “You’re reinfected”. 

 

However the GREATEST thing that I discovered is the 2 thick ones causing soreness for day has evolved. It is now ONE shot. I thought not as thick, feeling only a tiny stinging & pressure for a 1/2 a second in the middle. That was it, and NO SORENESS shortly after it was do. 

[LuciferSubFagPig]

Attempted to edit, lost time:

 

 I did a screening in May 2018. Because of my history and knowledge of it when I had an extreme sick thing the weekend after the 4th of July, I called to get screened for STI. Blood on 11 July, call Friday the 13th with a positive result of 1:128. Will share why another time I did the pills. No play and followed the plan. The beginning of August result came back 1:256 border line for nerosphillis. I flip out when told reinfection because I only had broken down and played with 2 buddies 2 days prior to the blood. It didn’t make sense a sneak 6 week window bug would work so quick. My HIV VTU Seattle ARNP called an expert with syphillis she knew who said that reinfect was less likely, and was not doing the pills for long enough or weren’t strong enough. 

However the GREATESt thing that I discovered is the 2 thick ones causing soreness for days has evolved. It is now ONE shot. I thought not as thick, feeling only a tiny stinging & pressure for a 1/2 a second in the middle. That was it, and NO SORENESS shortly after it was do. 

[Frenchpig]

So indeed two options : reinfection or resistance to the treatment (not long enough and/or not strong enough to work completely on the bacteria)

[Guest BBBoyfromTN]

On ‎2‎/‎22‎/‎2019 at 8:18 AM, Frenchpig said:

So indeed two options : reinfection or resistance to the treatment (not long enough and/or not strong enough to work completely on the bacteria)

I think Frenchpig has it right. I've had that happen a couple times where I thought it was treated but I was re-infected. It was at a time where I did a lot of anon so I wasn't able to ask questions of the guys I'd been with. Some strains also are becoming very resistant to treatment and it takes more than one round or using different meds to get it under control. A bud of mine who lives in Phoenix got a pretty nasty strain and had to go through four rounds to get it under control. Occupational hazard of fucking around. 

[Cutedelicategay]

Eventually the doctor had a retest and the titre stayed 1:16. Next test in May again. The doctor told him that the criteria for reinfection is 4 fold increase and since 1:64 had dropped 4 fold to 1:8 but increased 2 fold to 1:16 that doesn't constitute reinfection as per the medical criteria. He was told not to worry and wait until next test. The fucker is fucking around horny holes. I find it absurd that he is not even considered for a re treatment even though criteria is not met. This is Canada the last time I checked...

[wildbottom]

I have Syph myself - here's what I can tell you.  If you have it, you're never cured - you'll hear about "viral load" which is not just an HIV term, when the viral load drops to a certain point it's considered in remission.  Those figures mean when blood with Syph in it is analyzed, it is still detectable after they've thinned the blood 64 times, 32 times, 16 times, 8 times, etc.  My syph was diagnosed in July of last year (along with Hep B), was latent and tested 1/64 by the time they found it, so it wasn't contagious but it had a long time in me - I was treated (3 shots of penicillin over a 2 week period) and I've been monitored every 3 months since it is now at 1/16 - I just so happened to see my doctor today and she was happy with the drop - said it will soon be undetectable and no longer a problem. She is ready to put me on a preventative dose of 100mg Doxy daily to lessen the chances of Syph, Chlam and Gono.  Hep B, by the way, is similar - you're never cured, but in 75% of all cases here in the US the liver takes care of it for you and puts it into remission.  She's checking my viral load  this week and if it's low enough she'll have me get a Hep B immunization.  FYI - she gave me an HPV immunization today and is ready to put me on PrEP when I say go.. I'm getting as bulletproof as possible little by little.

[srider]

On 2/19/2019 at 7:45 PM, Cutedelicategay said:

This long weekend I had mind blowing sex with a friend I ran into at a gay bar. He mentioned to me that he was infected with syphilis in March 2018 with titre of 1:32 and treated since. His last test in November 2018 was 1:8 which was 4 fold decline in titres and the doctor declared him cured. His recent test as of last week after November 2018 test showed titre to be 1:16 which is 2 fold increase. The norm is that a person is syphilis positive if there is 4 fold titre increase. I already had my test fir syphilis negative as of beginning of February this year. 

I am really concerned about opportunistic infections and I have booked my doctor's appointment for first week of Mach. My question is how did a 4 fold decline increase 2 fold? Does this mean he is still infected to pass syphilis to me? Of course I am not expecting medical responses unless there is a medical health professional on this forum but out of your experience and research please help me calm down. My research says a 4 fold increase from last titre is infection or reinfection.

Nurse here in Canada with lots of syphilis experience for context. 

There are likely two possibilities, the margin of erroe for the test is a 1 dilution or a 2-fold difference. Therefore a 1:8 and 1:16 could be just down to the lab tech's interpretation. 

Alternatively, he could have been re-infected with syphilis and it was incubating and that represented a true increase and if he doesn't receive treatment a repeat test in 2-4 weeks would be a much higher titre. 

For yourself, if you had a non-reactive syphilis test, repeat in 2-4 weeks from that time. If you were infected the serology would become reactive by that point. Also, if you have a chancre at the site of exposure, swollen lymph nodes, a rash, or neurological symptoms that may be indicative of a syphilis infection. 

[srider]

On 2/19/2019 at 8:48 PM, Chargedup said:

It means he never got the shots. Should be detected only at 1.1 if he got the penicillin.  He’s highly charged. Get your shots.  

It can take a while for your titre to drop. Some people, especially HIV+, will serofast at higher titre levels.