HIV in my Drink

[Joepana]

Dear Dr. HHH,
I come from Venezuela, sorry for my English.
The doubt that i have is that i'm thinking that someone could put some blood in my Drink in a restaurant where i went 6 weeks ago.
I'm very concerned about it because at the 3 weeks after the event i got a kind of post nasal drip that last 2 days; after i had intermittent symptoms of sore throat with cough with phlem at the 5 week after the event and in the 6 week after the event.
The questions are:

1.- The ARS symptoms could appears as intermitten symptoms (appear two days disappear and appear once again?

2.- Cough with phlem and post nasal drip are symptoms of ARS ?

3.- If someone put blood in my drink the HIV will die inmediately (The Drink was a Malta or Beer without alcohol?

4.- Should i'm in risk of having capture HIV ?

Thanks Dr. HHH, i will hope that you respond me as soon as possible, i'm very scared!

See you. From Caracas, Venezuela.

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

Relax.  There is no risk.  You cannot catch HIV by drinking HIV-contaminated liquids.  And of course nobody is going to intentionally put blood in someone's drink.  Second, ARS does not cause post-nasal drip or cough with phlegm, and of course hundreds of common viruses are much more common causes of sore throat than HIV is.  So your symptoms don't suggest HIV anyway.

1) ARS symptoms cannot appear in less than 10 days.  2) No, these are not ARS symptoms.  3) Yes, especially with alcohol.  But you can't get infected by drinking live HIV anyway.  4) Of course not.

No prolonged discussion, please.  There is no additional information you can provide that would change my opinion.

Buena suerte--   HHH, MD

[sdsink]

A related discussion, hiv was started.

[Joepana]

Merry Christmass!!!
Feliz Navidad!!!

[Joepana]

Ok. I will believe that nothing happened to me spite that My Symptoms come and go . I guess that i don

[Joepana]

Dear Dr. HHH,
You think that is only coincidence that my symptoms appear at the 3 weeks.
I'm guessing that all the event is only in my mind, but i don

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

Yes, a coincidence.  Even live HIV doesn't usually infect people.  Lots of people believe that "just one virus" is all it takes.  Not true.  A person has to be exposed to millions of virus particles for the infection to take hold.  That is why only certain kinds of contact allow transmission.

You may need professional help to get past your anxieties, and a distant online expert is not the way to do that.  I cannot help further.

HHH, MD

[Joepana]

It is true that HIV will die in seconds after stay outside the human body?

[Joepana]

I'm so Sorry Dr. I won't do it again.
Thanks.
Bye

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

You can't post the same question in multiple threads, especially not your own.  If I don't respond to a follow-up question, it's intentional.

HIV can survive outside the body for varying times, anywhere from only a few seconds to several days, depending on mosture, tempurature, and other factors.  But it doesn't matter:  environmental exposure never is a source of HIV infection.  That has been widely understood as a basic fact for 20 years, since the earliest days of the AIDS epidemic--which is why I didn't think your question really needed a response.  But there you go.

HHH, MD

[Joepana]

Thanks a lot Dr. HHH,
I will calm down. Thanks for all the helping information.