How Can You Catch Hiv From Someone

How Do You Get Hiv From Semen Or Vaginal Fluid

Body fluids including semen and vaginal secretions can contain HIV. If a person has HIV and a detectable viral load, HIV can passed on to someone if their semen or vaginal secretions get into the body of a sexual partner during vaginal or anal sex.

If a man has HIV and a detectable viral load, one of his body fluids where the virus is found is his semen.

If he has a detectable viral load and his semen gets into the body of his sexual partner during sex, then HIV can get into the other persons bloodstream.

Pre-cum also contains HIV this is why there is a risk of infection even if a man pulls out of his partner before he ejaculates.

If a woman has HIV and she has a detectable viral load, one of her body fluids where the virus is found is in her vaginal secretions.

If these come into contact with a penis during sex, then HIV could be transmitted. The virus in her secretions can enter through the delicate skin of the penis or foreskin.

Interpreting The Numberswhat Additional Information Needs To Be Provided

Some clients may see these numbers and think their risk of HIV transmission is low. Therefore, caution is needed when interpreting them. If these numbers are provided to clients, they should be accompanied by information that helps shed light on why the risk may be higher than it seems.

Transmission can occur after one exposure.

It is important to emphasize that a person could become infected from having unprotected sex once or a person could have unprotected sex many times and not become infected, regardless of how low or high the risk per exposure is.

A risk of 1% would mean that an average of one infection would occur if 100 HIV-negative people were exposed to HIV through a certain type of sex. It does not mean that a person needs to be exposed 100 times for HIV infection to occur.

These are estimates of average risk in the absence of biological factors that increase risk.

The numbers in the table above are rough estimates. They are averages and do not represent the risk from all exposures to HIV through a certain type of sex.

The risk of HIV transmission may be much higher than these averages if biological risk factors are present. For example, research shows that STIs and some vaginal conditions, such as bacterial vaginosis, can increase the risk of HIV transmission by up to 8 times.6,7,8 As a result, the risk of an HIV-negative woman becoming infected through unprotected receptive vaginal sex could be closer to 1% if she has a vaginal STI.

How You Get Hiv

HIV is found in the body fluids of an infected person,which includes semen, vaginal and anal fluids, blood, and breast milk. To get HIV, one of these fluids from someone with HIV has to get into your blood.

HIV is a fragile virus and does not survive outside the body for long. HIV is most commonly transmitted through vaginal or anal sex without a condom.

Other ways of getting HIV include:

• using a contaminated needle, syringe or other equipment to inject drugs
• transmission from a mother to her child before, during or shortly after birth however, with medical treatment it is possible to prevent the virus from being passed on by a mother to her child
• through blood transfusions however, since 1985 all blood donated in the UK must be screened for HIV – screening policies in the developing world may not be as rigorous, so there is a possible risk of developing HIV if you receive a blood transfusion in certain parts of the world
• through oral sex or sharing sex toys

HIV cannot be transmitted from:

• kissing
• being sneezed on by someone with HIV
• sharing baths, towels or cutlery with an HIV-infected person
• swimming in a pool or sitting on a toilet seat that someone with HIV has used
• animals or insects such as mosquitoes

Saliva, sweat and urine do not contain enough of the HIV virus to infect another person.

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What Is Hiv And What Is Aids

HIV/AIDS are widely known as incurable sexually transmitted diseases, but you might not know the difference between these acronyms and what they stand for.

For simplicityâs sake, HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. HIV stands for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

If a person takes a blood test and receives a diagnosis of HIV, then they are HIV positiveâif a person does not have HIV, then they are HIV negative. HIV causes havoc in a personâs body by weakening their immune system . HIV progressively destroys the cellular part of the immune systemâparticularly types of white blood cells called CD4 cellsâwhich, over time, makes the person become immunodeficient .

As the HIV infection develops in the body, the person will become more and more immunodeficient until they reach a point where they are classified as having Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome . This is often the end stage of an HIV infection, where a personâs body is so immunodeficient that they develop infections, diseases, or cancers and are no longer able to mount a immune defense and fight them off .

There is no cure for HIV . But, if a person does become infected with HIV there are treatments available which can help keep a person healthy.

What Puts You At Risk For Stds And Hiv

You’re at risk if you:

• Have sex without using a condom, with someone who is infected.
• Have had an STD.
• Have more than one sex partner.
• Are under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

• Many women have STDs without having symptoms. This means that unless she gets tested, she may have an STD and not know it.
• Young women are getting HIV or an STD because the tissue lining the vagina is more fragile.

If you are a woman, take charge of your sexual health. Be sure to schedule pelvic exams and pap smears every year. Get tested and learn how to protect yourself from STDs and HIV.

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How Risky Is Oral Sex For Hiv

Dick-sucking isn’t what we’d call high risk. The lining of your mouth is strong, and saliva actually contains antibodies that neutralise and deactivate the virus.

So it’s pretty hard to infect the skin inside your mouth – but you should still check for cuts and ulcers both in the mouth and on the cock, because these can create a path for HIV to get into your bloodstream.

Flossing and vigorous brushing can cause gum bleeding which puts you at a higher risk of being infected when you’re giving a beej, so that’s something to keep in mind when you’re getting ready to go out on a Friday night !

How Is Hiv Not Spread

HIV is not spread by:

• Air or water
• Mosquitoes, ticks, or other insects
• Saliva, tears, sweat, feces, or urine that is not mixed with the blood of a person with HIV
• Shaking hands hugging sharing toilets sharing dishes, silverware, or drinking glasses or engaging in closed-mouth or social kissing with a person with HIV
• Drinking fountains
• Other sexual activities that dont involve the exchange of body fluids .
• Donating blood

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Hiv And Stds Are Spread In The Same Ways

You can get HIV or an STD by having sex without a condom with a person who is already infected. HIV and some STDs can be passed from a mother to her baby while she is pregnant, during birth or through breast feeding. HIV and some STDs can also be spread by sharing drug “works” with someone who has HIV or an STD.

Why Does Being Undetectable Mean You Cant Pass On Hiv

Taking antiretroviral treatment when you have HIV reduces the amount of HIV in your body. The less virus you have in your body, the less you will have in your semen, vaginal fluids or anal mucous. This means that you are less likely to pass HIV on during sex.

When you take your treatment correctly and itâs working well, there may come a point where the amount of virus in your body is so little that normal tests will not detect it. This is what is called an âundetectable viral loadâ. Because the levels of the virus in your body are so low you can no longer pass it on through sex.

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Can You Get Hiv From Kissing

Since HIV is not spread through spit, kissing is not a common way to get infected. In certain situations where other body fluids are shared, such as if both people have open sores in their mouths or bleeding gums, there is a chance you could get HIV from deep, open-mouthed kissing.

You also dont get HIV from:

• Touching or hugging someone who has HIV/AIDS.
• Public bathrooms or swimming pools.
• Sharing cups, utensils or telephones with someone who has HIV/AIDS.
• Bug bites.
• Donating blood.

Oral Sex With A Vagina

The risk of transmission through oral sex with a vagina is very low because the mouth is an unfriendly environment for HIV. Saliva breaks down the virus, and the mucous membranes in the mouth are more protective than anal or vaginal tissue. The minimal risk of transmission from oral sex with a vagina is only for the person performing the oral sex, as their mouth is in contact with vaginal fluid. However, there is little data documenting HIV transmission via oral sex from an infected vagina to an uninfected person.

Performing oral sex on a vagina during menstruation increases the risk, because blood has more HIV than vaginal fluid.

A person receiving oral sex is generally not at risk as that person is coming into contact only with saliva, which does not transmit HIV. The presence of other sexually transmitted infections can increase the risk of HIV transmission during oral sex.

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Mother To Infant Transmission

It is possible for a mother who has HIV to pass the virus to her baby by exposure to blood and vaginal fluids during birth or through breast milk during feeding. The risk of transmission from mother to child during pregnancy or birth can be greatly reduced by taking certain HIV medications as prescribed.

How Can I Take Care Of Myself While Living With Hiv

It’s very important to take your medications as prescribed and to make sure you dont miss appointments. This is called treatment adherence.

If you miss medications, even by accident, HIV can change how it infects your cells , potentially causing your medications to stop working. If your schedule prevents you from taking medications on time or making it to appointments, talk to your healthcare provider.

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When Someone You Know Has Hiv

When someone in your family tests positive for HIV, you may feel a range of emotions. Among fear, confusion, regret and love for the person afflicted, you may also feel afraid for your own personal well-being and may have questions about just how contagious HIV may be. Rest assured that people with HIV can live at home and maintain a normal social life. Since the virus is not spread by casual household contact, family members, roommates, and visitors are not at risk of becoming infected.

The following information is provided to clarify what should and should not be done in living with someone with HIV. You will see that most of it is just good hygiene practices.

Hand washing is an effective way to prevent the spread of any germs. Wash hands with soap and water before preparing food, before eating, and after using the toilet. This is to protect both the infected and uninfected family members remember that a person living with HIV may have a weak immune system and therefore may be more likely to catch any type of infection from another person. They, too, are vulnerable.

Personal Articles such as toothbrushes, razors and razor blades should not be shared among household members. These may become soiled with blood and could spread germs that may cause many illnesses.

Wash dishes in hot soapy water. No special precautions are necessary. There is no need to wash separately the dishes used by the infected person.

What You Need To Know About The Links Between Hiv And Stds

Many people think that STDs are a harmless “fact of life.” Since most STDs can be cured, people think, “Doctors give you medicine and that’s the end of it, right?” Well, not quite! Having an STD can increase your chances of getting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

• Contact information and Phone numbers

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Protect Others If You Have Hiv

If I have HIV, what is the best way to protect others?

• Get in care and take medicine to treat HIV.

• HIV medicine can reduce the amount of HIV in the blood . HIV medicine can make the viral load very lowso low that a test cant detect it .
• People with HIV who keep an undetectable viral load can live long, healthy lives. Viral suppression is defined as having less than 200 copies of HIV per milliliter of blood.
• If a person has an undetectable viral load, they will not transmit HIV to their partner through sex.
• Having an undetectable viral load also prevents transmission to others through sharing needles, syringes, or other injection equipment, and from mother-to-child during pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding.
• Most people can get the virus under control within six months.
• Taking ART does not prevent transmission of other sexually transmitted diseases .

Learn more about how to protect others.

No 3 Having Anal Sex : 1 In 909

The insertive partner is less likely than the receptive partner to get the infection from an HIV-positive partner. However, bodily fluids carrying the virus can enter the insertive persons body through the urethra or any cuts or sores on the penis.

• Reduce the risk. If the insertive partner uses a condom, that can cut the risk of HIV transmission by an average of 63 percent, according to the CDC. You can help lessen the chance that the condom will slip or break by using water- or silicone-based lubricants. In addition, be aware that condoms dont fully protect against certain sexually transmitted diseases that can be contracted through skin-to-skin contact, like syphilis and herpes.

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How Is Hiv Spread From Person To Person

HIV can only be spread through specific activities. In the United States, the most common ways are:

• Having vaginal or anal sex with someone who has HIV without using a condom the right way every time or taking medicines to prevent or treat HIV. Anal sex is riskier than vaginal sex for HIV transmission. Learn more about the HIV risk associated with specific sexual activities.
• Sharing injection drug equipment, such as needles,syringes, or other drug injection equipment with someone who has HIV because these items may have blood in them, and blood can carry HIV. People who inject hormones, silicone, or steroids can also get or transmit HIV by sharing needles, syringes, or other injection equipment. Learn more about HIV and injection drug use.

Less common ways are:

• An HIV-positive person transmitting HIV to their baby during pregnancy, birth, or breastfeeding. However, the use of HIV medicines and other strategies have helped lower the risk of perinatal transmission of HIV to less than 1% in the United States. Learn more.
• Being exposed to HIV through a needlestick or sharps injury. This is a risk mainly for health care workers. The risk is very low.

HIV is spread only in extremely rare cases by:

Learn more about how HIV is passed from one person to another.

Challenges In Calculating A Number

It isn’t easy for researchers to calculate the risk of transmission from an exposure to HIV through sex. To do this effectively, a group of HIV-negative individuals need to be followed over time and their exposures to HIVboth the number of times they are exposed and the types of exposureneed to be tracked.

As you can imagine, accurately tracking the number of times a person is exposed to HIV is very difficult. Researchers ask HIV-negative individuals enrolled in these studies to report how many times they have had sex in a given period of time, what type of sex they had, how often they used condoms and the HIV status of their partner. Because a person may have trouble remembering their sexual behaviour or may not want to tell the whole truth, this reporting is often inaccurate.

Furthermore, a person does not always know the HIV status of their partner. For this reason, researchers usually enroll HIV-negative individuals who are in stable relationships with an HIV-positive partner . Researchers can then conclude that any unprotected sex reported by a study participant counts as an exposure to HIV.

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Can I Get Pregnant If I Have Hiv

Some people think that HIV hurts your chances of getting pregnant, but this isnt true. If you have HIV and want to become pregnant, talk to your healthcare provider. Together you can make a plan before you try to get pregnant to keep you, your partner and any future children healthy.

HIV can spread to your partner during unprotected sex and to your baby during pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding. Taking ART medications can greatly reduce your risk of transmitting HIV to your baby, especially if you have an undetectable viral load. Your provider may recommend that you dont breastfeed your baby and use formula instead.