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Open wound exposure to semen or saliva in environmental surface

Dear Doctor:

Thank you very much for your help! I am male, 38 years old, in good health. I received an oral sex by a call girl in a night club last Thursday. Of course, I used the condoms properly. Everything is fine, the condoms was good and did not break. And the oral sex only last 2-3 minutes. I think I was pretty safe during the oral sex because I used the condoms well.

However, when it finished and I got off the bed, I noticed I stepped something wet on the floor, it could be the call girl's saliva or someone else's semen. But I was not so sure what earth it was as the lights was dark there. At that moment I had some beriberi on my right foot, so the skin there is a little broken and not intact, like a little open cut between the little toe and the fourth toe, but NO bleeding.

I now feel very worried, as the HIV/HBV/HCV infected semen or saliva with blood on the floor could enter my body from the broken skin even though there is NO bleeding in my foot and infected me.

My questions is :

1) Is it risky for me to have HIV & HBV/HCV infected in such situation?  CDC told us the HIV won't transmit during environmental surface, but I don't know how about my situation?

2) Should I have blood test 2 months later to exclude the HIV/HBV/HCV infection?

3) I am not HBV vaccinated, my doctor suggest me to receive the HBV vaccine as soon as possible to prevent the potential HBV infection in the future,should I have HBV vaccine only or with HBIG together in my situation?

I do worry a lot and can not sleep well these days, really looking forward to having your great help!

Thank you!

PETER







4 Responses
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300980 tn?1194929400
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome to the Forum.  Before I address your specific questions, let me congratulate you on your safe sex practices- they will keep you healthy.  

As for whatever you might have stepped on, I can assure you that you can be quite confident that the exposure you describe will not lead to infection with hepatitis B or C, or to HIV.  These infections are not spread from person to person through surface contamination of the sort you describe. Transmission of any of these infections in this way have NEVER been described and it has been looked for because your situation is analogous to situations in which persons working in hospitals, clinics and laboratories all too often have skin contamination with infectious materials.  

The reasons this does not occur are and should not worry you are multiple,  They include:
1.  In your case you do not know what you stepped in.  In may not have been from a human at all.
2.  Whomever it came from, there is little chance that it was contaminated with HIV or hepatitis viruses- most people do not have these infections.  Even among CSWs.
3.  By your account the material had been on the floor for a while, perhaps 20 minutes.  Exposure to the environment makes these organisms begin to die almost as soon as they are on the floor or exposure to air.  They become non-infectious well before they are completely dead.
4.  Superficial wounds, cuts, scrapes, etc. similar to yours are not efficient mechanisms for these infections to enter the body.  Transmission through surface contamination is vanishingly rare, if it happens at all.

My advice- do not worry.  There is no meaningful risk for infection and no testing is necessary (it would be a waste of time).  I would however suggest that you get the hepatitis B vaccine, not because of the exposure but because it is relatively inexpensive, highly effective, and recommended for everyone.

I hope these comments are helpful.  EWH
Helpful - 1
300980 tn?1194929400
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Glad I could help.  Take care.  EWH
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Dear  Dr. Hook,

Your advice are pretty wise and so detailed to me! It clarified all my doubts, even better than my doctors', I really  thank you so much for your professional  
knowledge and great help!

I do feel much better now!

thanks again and wish you all the best!

Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I added that it could be around 20 minutes from I walked in the room to getting off the bed, so the wet something (semen or saliva) could be there at least 20 minutes.
Helpful - 0

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