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HIV Question
Everybody here including Doctor HHH talks about the low risks we have all taken, I have some questions. Call me stupid if you want.
How does someone get exposed to HIV?
1. Does there have to be a cut on the penis?
2. Do you have to come in contact with blood or semen?
3. Does the HIV Virus die when it comes in contact with
air?
4. Why is it a lower risk for a heterosexual males?
5. Why is cunnilingus a very low or no risk?
6. Does the HIV virus die in vaginal fluid when it hits air?
How does someone get exposed to HIV?
1. Does there have to be a cut on the penis?
2. Do you have to come in contact with blood or semen?
3. Does the HIV Virus die when it comes in contact with
air?
4. Why is it a lower risk for a heterosexual males?
5. Why is cunnilingus a very low or no risk?
6. Does the HIV virus die in vaginal fluid when it hits air?
Hi everyone...
all the answers were very well given and very informative.
I wanted to add something regaring the cervical fluid (or whatever it is called).
It the cervical fluid in found deeper in the vagina, does that mean that the length of the guys dick has a role to play also in getting infected?
Thanks a lot guys.
all the answers were very well given and very informative.
I wanted to add something regaring the cervical fluid (or whatever it is called).
It the cervical fluid in found deeper in the vagina, does that mean that the length of the guys dick has a role to play also in getting infected?
Thanks a lot guys.
Hmmm, good questions, I'll take a shot at answering, and if anyone disagrees, feel free to chime in, might make for a decent discussion:
1. Does there have to be a cut on the penis?
I wouldn't think so. I assume you are talking about unprotected sex here, as, if you are wearing a condom, perhaps a cut doesn't much matter in that case.
2. Do you have to come in contact with blood or semen?
Contact with any bodily fluid with a high enough concentration of HIV would do the trick, though it is important to stress what type of contact is meant here. It does not mean casual contact. Instead, it means contact with the cells that HIV likes to infect. Thus, stepping on a droplet of blood is not going to do it, whereas being the receptive partner in unprotected vaginal or anal sex might.
3. Does the HIV Virus die when it comes in contact with
air?
If not immediately, then close to it. HIV is a fragile virus, and does not live for very long outside of its host.
4. Why is it a lower risk for a heterosexual males?
Perhaps due to a couple of things:
1. Female to male transmission of HIV is not as efficient (or so I have read) as male to female or male to male.
2. The population of heterosexual HIV carriers is lower than homosexual carriers. Perhaps just a simple matter of odds? We could probably discuss this at some length.
One thing I noticed on the CDC Website: the heterosexual transmission category is classified as "High Risk Heterosexual Contact", which is defined to mean: heterosexual contact with someone either known to either have HIV or to be a high risk for having HIV. I find that curious, as no other definition is supplied. I know what it implies to me, just curious what others think about it.
5. Why is cunnilingus a very low or no risk?
Perhaps, again, for a couple of reasons:
1. The more highly infectious cervical fluids (think I have that right) are found more deeply in the vagina than would normally be contacted during oral sex. Perhaps this is why fingering isn't really a risk (well, that and the fact that any HIV you encounter is coming into contact with the skin). Also why grinding is not a risk.
2. Saliva, as Teak pointed out, has an inhibiting effect on the HIV virus. In other words, HIV doesn't survive, or remain viable, for very long in saliva.
6. Does the HIV virus die in vaginal fluid when it hits air?
My guess is yes, which goes back to the previous question. Infection, when it does happen, would happen deeper in the vagina.
NO, to receiving oral and as close to nil for giving oral. Read the studies of couples where one is positive and one is negative and condoms are used for anal and vaginal sex but not with oral. No one has been infected.
Anyone that pays attention to Dumbo, needs to reread his advice. He doesn't know anything about HIV transmission or infection, nor does he know anything on testing and treatment. He is just pissed because there are people here that are more knowledgeable than him and can correct his false information.
Anyone that pays attention to Dumbo, needs to reread his advice. He doesn't know anything about HIV transmission or infection, nor does he know anything on testing and treatment. He is just pissed because there are people here that are more knowledgeable than him and can correct his false information.
You were too quick for me. Thank you!! Please go on with more of my questions on this post.
How to get yourself infected:
Unprotected anal sex
Unprotected vaginal sex
Sharing works with other IV drug users
Mother to infant, birth and breast feeding. Note: not all children born to HIV postive parents are positive.
Occupational health hazards, lacerations by broken bones of someone that is positive. Broken test tube containg blood of an HIV positive patient. Blood splatter to eyes from an infected patient.
Unprotected anal sex
Unprotected vaginal sex
Sharing works with other IV drug users
Mother to infant, birth and breast feeding. Note: not all children born to HIV postive parents are positive.
Occupational health hazards, lacerations by broken bones of someone that is positive. Broken test tube containg blood of an HIV positive patient. Blood splatter to eyes from an infected patient.
And none of those are anywhere near 100% risks. Exposure to the virus does not necessarily mean you're infected.
Saliva has HIV inhibiting factors which breaks down HIV to a level that can no longer infect.
But monkey is right.....just because someone was exposed....does not = definite infection.
Are you kidding?
freddy999 has posted one of the best answers I have ever seen here on this board. Teak offers nothing of value whatsoever. I am not sure why some (o_g) people are so eager to kiss his a$$. He offers absolutely nothing more than fear mongering which is typical of the gay community to do.(minus Brian123 who although I do not always agree with all of his posts, as I am sure he does not mine, he does recognize realities of hiv transmission IMO).
Teak offers nothing other than what the CDC publishes. Where's the wisdom in that?
As a matter of fact, the quality of this specific board has deteriorated since the lone ranger has shown up here. Prior to that, other than the odd scuffle between monkeyflower and myself, it was rather calm. Even at that, I can still respect monkeyflower's input far far more than teak's/freak's.
freddy999 has posted one of the best answers I have ever seen here on this board. Teak offers nothing of value whatsoever. I am not sure why some (o_g) people are so eager to kiss his a$$. He offers absolutely nothing more than fear mongering which is typical of the gay community to do.(minus Brian123 who although I do not always agree with all of his posts, as I am sure he does not mine, he does recognize realities of hiv transmission IMO).
Teak offers nothing other than what the CDC publishes. Where's the wisdom in that?
As a matter of fact, the quality of this specific board has deteriorated since the lone ranger has shown up here. Prior to that, other than the odd scuffle between monkeyflower and myself, it was rather calm. Even at that, I can still respect monkeyflower's input far far more than teak's/freak's.
At least we agree that we disagree at times. ;)
I would provide any info. to anyone based on my experience, experiences read on the forums, or whatever I learn. I admittingly will say I do not know everything there is to know about HIV, and its transmission(s). But, being gay, I can and will assist anyone I can by what knowledge, as little or great that it may be, to anyone I can.
But to be completely honest, I think MD HHH always has the supreme answer for all who as the questions.
Any one person who comes on here to perpetuate fear, etc. on here would be psychologically wrong/ill and morally mean. To purposefully instill fear into people would, in all honestly, be cruel. I try my best to add my 2 cents to anyone that has had similar or somewhat similar circumstances to myself or persons I know or have known.
I think Teak has some valid answers, and indeed some more conservative than that of others or even MD HHH, but I think he is willing to help those as you are, as well as others on here.
If anything, lets all work together to help others that seek our experiences, info., knowledge, ....that we can be so kind to share.
Brian
I would provide any info. to anyone based on my experience, experiences read on the forums, or whatever I learn. I admittingly will say I do not know everything there is to know about HIV, and its transmission(s). But, being gay, I can and will assist anyone I can by what knowledge, as little or great that it may be, to anyone I can.
But to be completely honest, I think MD HHH always has the supreme answer for all who as the questions.
Any one person who comes on here to perpetuate fear, etc. on here would be psychologically wrong/ill and morally mean. To purposefully instill fear into people would, in all honestly, be cruel. I try my best to add my 2 cents to anyone that has had similar or somewhat similar circumstances to myself or persons I know or have known.
I think Teak has some valid answers, and indeed some more conservative than that of others or even MD HHH, but I think he is willing to help those as you are, as well as others on here.
If anything, lets all work together to help others that seek our experiences, info., knowledge, ....that we can be so kind to share.
Brian
Teak, you don't believe oral to be a risk at all? Just wondering because I have read tons of your posts and know that you are knowledgeable and you know what you are talking about. Thanks for all you do! Godbless!
It's more difficult from woman to man because of the fact that the mucous membrane in a man covers a much smaller area. HIV does not have to go down your urethra to infect, it can also pass through any mucus membrane that contains dentridic cells which are found in the lining of the urethra as well as in the skin that comprises the foreskin. Also generally speaking a man's semen has a higher concentration of virus than vaginal secretions, the semen is effectively "injected" into the woman and it tends to stay there for a longer timespan.
It has very little to do with cuts on the penis etc.
It has very little to do with cuts on the penis etc.
Also, for men, if no sores are on the shaft, infected vaginal fluids would have to get into the eurethra and a tear in there to get into the blood stream. That's the great thing about rubbers: if they don't pop or slip totally off, you're going to be fine. Shaken, but HIV negative.
I'll try and answer some of those, though you should look up a thread in the HIV prevention forum on "cunnilingus" from 11/03/2006. It's very informative.
Firstly, HIV doesn't survive well outside our cells, so yes, any sort of drying tends to kill it.
Secondly, there seems to be molecules in saliva that inactivate HIV anyway, so there are very low levels of active HIV virus in saliva. Thus the virtually zero risk of transmission from a person givng oral sex, but the slightly higher risk of transmission from the person receiving it.
I'm not sure about why transmission to heterosexual males is harder, but it may be because the high concentrations of HIV tend to be in the vaginal fluids at the cervicouterine interface.
Firstly, HIV doesn't survive well outside our cells, so yes, any sort of drying tends to kill it.
Secondly, there seems to be molecules in saliva that inactivate HIV anyway, so there are very low levels of active HIV virus in saliva. Thus the virtually zero risk of transmission from a person givng oral sex, but the slightly higher risk of transmission from the person receiving it.
I'm not sure about why transmission to heterosexual males is harder, but it may be because the high concentrations of HIV tend to be in the vaginal fluids at the cervicouterine interface.
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