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HIV Prevention (Expert Forum)
Can HIV be contracted this way?
Answered by
University of Washington
Seattle - WA
This forum is limited to prevention of HIV and to safe sex in general. If you believe you might have been exposed to HIV and want help to judge your risk, would like advice about HIV testing, or have questions about the effectiveness of condoms or the risks associated with specific sexual practices, this is the site for you.
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No questions will be accepted on the treatment of HIV/AIDS or its complications, viral load, and similar topics. If you have questions about a specific STD other than HIV/AIDS, please visit the STD Forum. Questions that do not pertain to the above topics will be removed from the forum.
If you have not done so, please review other threads in our archives for questions similar to yours and Dr. Handsfield's replies. Questions that duplicate other frequent ones, for which abundant replies exist, and that have little educational value for other forum users, will be DELETED WITHOUT RESPONSE. YOUR PAYMENT WILL NOT BE REFUNDED. The most common examples of such questions are those about low risk exposures to HIV, such as oral sex, condom- protected intercourse hand-to-genital exposure, and nonsexual contact with possibly infected blood or body fluids as well as symptoms of early HIV infection.
Can HIV be contracted this way?
by firstone2008, May 07, 2008 02:09PM
Unfortunately I'm a very paranoid person, so you reading this may make you think I'm mad to think i could have contracted HIV.
Anyway, I am 21, male and have had sexual contact with numerous other guys, around my age. If I have ever had sex, which is a few times, it has been with a condom (and a slightly thicker condom). If anyone has had with sex with me, which was twice, then one time they used a condom and did not ejaculate inside me, and the second person used a condom (well 2 actually I'm so paranoid...I know that's not the best idea but they did not fall off whatsoever) and most likely ejaculated as they were pulling out or after they did.
I read today that HIV can be contracted through mucous membranes, including the head of the penis. I am circumcised if that makes any difference (apparently it may slightly reduce the risk?). So, from this, if someone ejaculates and some semen comes into contact with the head of my penis, does that have a risk? I always try to even prevent that happening, but perhaps in the past semen may have come into contact there and this therefore worries me. I understand HIV is most commonly transferred by unprotected anal sex, which I know never to do, however I only read today that the penis head is a mucous membrane so if infected semen comes into contact with that, does it pose a risk? Or am I just being paranoid?
Anyway, I am 21, male and have had sexual contact with numerous other guys, around my age. If I have ever had sex, which is a few times, it has been with a condom (and a slightly thicker condom). If anyone has had with sex with me, which was twice, then one time they used a condom and did not ejaculate inside me, and the second person used a condom (well 2 actually I'm so paranoid...I know that's not the best idea but they did not fall off whatsoever) and most likely ejaculated as they were pulling out or after they did.
I read today that HIV can be contracted through mucous membranes, including the head of the penis. I am circumcised if that makes any difference (apparently it may slightly reduce the risk?). So, from this, if someone ejaculates and some semen comes into contact with the head of my penis, does that have a risk? I always try to even prevent that happening, but perhaps in the past semen may have come into contact there and this therefore worries me. I understand HIV is most commonly transferred by unprotected anal sex, which I know never to do, however I only read today that the penis head is a mucous membrane so if infected semen comes into contact with that, does it pose a risk? Or am I just being paranoid?
Doctor's Answer
by H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D., May 07, 2008 03:19PM
, May 07, 2008 03:19PM
As you suggest yourself, you are over-thinking the risk situation. HIV is pretty hard to transmit. Is it conceivable a person could be infected by brief exposure of semen to the head of his penis, especially if uncircumcised? Yes. Is it likely? No.
The penis head is not a mucous membrane. That term refers only to the linings of various body openings, like the mouth, rectum, since the female genital tract, inside the penis.
As I implied, stop over-thinking the risks. The basic safe sex rules for men who have sex with men are: 1) Always ask and share HIV status with potential partners before having sex, even if safe sex is planned. (That's because condoms sometimes fail, and intentions to remain safe sometimes are forgotten at the peak of passion.) 2) Always use condoms for anal sex with other than mutually monogamous partners.
If you consistently do both those things, you can expect a full lifetime of rewarding sex and rewarding personal relationships, without ever getting HIV. Some would advise also using condoms for oral sex. The risk of transmission by oral sex is low enough that it probably makes little difference, but that would remove whatever minor risk would persist without such condom use.
But truly, you don't need to worry about the minor, incidental sorts of exposures you describe. HIV isn't so easily transmitted.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
The penis head is not a mucous membrane. That term refers only to the linings of various body openings, like the mouth, rectum, since the female genital tract, inside the penis.
As I implied, stop over-thinking the risks. The basic safe sex rules for men who have sex with men are: 1) Always ask and share HIV status with potential partners before having sex, even if safe sex is planned. (That's because condoms sometimes fail, and intentions to remain safe sometimes are forgotten at the peak of passion.) 2) Always use condoms for anal sex with other than mutually monogamous partners.
If you consistently do both those things, you can expect a full lifetime of rewarding sex and rewarding personal relationships, without ever getting HIV. Some would advise also using condoms for oral sex. The risk of transmission by oral sex is low enough that it probably makes little difference, but that would remove whatever minor risk would persist without such condom use.
But truly, you don't need to worry about the minor, incidental sorts of exposures you describe. HIV isn't so easily transmitted.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
You need to stop thinking about the biology of HIV transmission. It is extremely complex and even the world's top experts do not fully understand it. Just believe the epidemiologic data about what kinds of sexual practices are or are not risky, and forget the biological explanations. For practical purposes, they don't matter.
The risk figures of 1 in 10,000 or whatever are very broad estimates. The sort of exposure you described above undoubtedly is less than that associated with most sexual exposures. But nobody can say more.
I know I'm only trying to reassure myself...but as long as I do not partake in anything known to be risky, such as unprotected anal sex or oral sex, I assume I have nothing to worry about. Am I right in saying that worrying this much about contracting HIV by mutual masturbation, where their semen may possibly come into contact with my penis head by chance, is really not worth panicking over?
Also, he already told you that you have nothing to worry about.
I will have no further coments on this thread.