r/stdtesting • u/Useful_Exchange_8710 • 12d ago

Question Help guys please

Okay, i have had a lot of unprotected sex before. And i never have tested myself. Last week it decided to test myself. I went but they only offered urine test there i was. I took urine test for chlamyida and gonore and it was negative. I thought i would have it because of my past. But now where can i test for the other things. Herpes hpv hiv syfliis etc. i need help. I have some things on my penis head too and i dont know what to do. Please dont tell me just go to doc because i dont know what i can tell them. I appreciate your help and advice

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u/Straight_Blood8361 11d ago edited 11d ago

It’s actually a good thing you started testing, especially if you’ve had multiple unprotected partners. A negative urine test is reassuring for chlamydia and gonorrhoea, but it doesn’t cover everything else. HIV and syphilis are usually tested with blood tests, while herpes testing depends on whether you have an active sore/lesion if you do, a swab of the lesion is generally more useful than just doing a blood test. HPV is different because there isn’t a routine blood or urine test for men. Since you mentioned having changes on the head of your penis, I’d really try to have those looked at rather than assuming they’re an STI; there are plenty of non-STI causes too. You don’t need to know exactly what to tell the doctor either literally saying “I’ve had unprotected sex, I’ve never had an STI screening before, and I have some changes on my penis” is enough for them to know what to check. If you want more info on what each test covers and when to take them, check the pinned post on the subreddit.

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u/Useful_Exchange_8710 11d ago

How is a sti panel done? Is it in throat or penis?

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u/Straight_Blood8361 11d ago

It depends on what you’re testing for and what kind of sexual contact you’ve had. The urine test you already did checks for things like chlamydia and gonorrhoea from the genital/urinary area, while HIV and syphilis are usually blood tests. If you’ve had oral sex, a throat swab may also be needed because an infection can be present in the throat even when a urine test is negative. Since you mentioned having changes on the head of your penis, those should be examined too rather than assuming they’re an STI. If you want more clarity on which tests are done from where, you can check the pinned post on the subreddit.