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Author Topic: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure  (Read 14760 times)

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Offline johny blaze

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worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« on: May 16, 2011, 02:04:46 pm »
My girlfriend of ten years is employed as a dental assistant.  She recently had an occupational exposure at work involving a dental explorer.  She was cleaning the instrument after she saw a patient and the explorer poked her through her glove.  The exposure ended up causing a puncture wound (which bled) on her thumb, which she immediately washed and cleaned.  She does not seem concerned about the incident due to it being a sharp injury but not a hollow bore needle injury.  We are both HIV negative.  Does she need to be tested over this incident?  Could she have exposed me due this incident?  Very concerned.

j Blaze

Offline Andy Velez

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #1 on: May 16, 2011, 04:40:32 pm »
That's a not uncommon sort of accident to occur in dental situations. I've never known of transmission to occur in that manner. And no, I don't see a cause for concern nor any need for testing.

HIV is a fragile virus. Once exposed to air it very quickly loses its viability if it is present. It is not transmitted easily by environmental objects including in a dental office.
Andy Velez

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #2 on: May 16, 2011, 05:09:06 pm »
Thank you Andy.......I will not worry about this exposure anymore.  I know HIV is not transmitted once outside the body but it helps to have fears reassured.

Offline Andy Velez

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #3 on: May 16, 2011, 05:32:33 pm »
Good. Glad the exchange was helpful.
Andy Velez

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #4 on: May 24, 2011, 07:00:08 pm »
I don't want to be like the people who keep coming back here with no risk situations, but I have additional information to add to my post that has concerned me.  I'm not well informed about HIV so i guess that's why I'm back. So here we go. Before my girlfriend was stuck with the dental explorer, it has been sitting for around five minutes after being used on a patient.  It probably had blood on the tip.  She was wearing a pair of cleaning gloves and the end poked here thumb causing slight bleeding.  Most of the information I have read is based on hollow bore needle sticks.  She does not seem to be concerned about the incident at all due to it not being hollow bore and sitting out for 5 minutes even if it had HIV infected blood on it. 

1: Is this a risk for transmission or am I being paranoid? 
2: Is there need for testing in a situation like this? 
3: I'm assuming HIV can't live outside the body on an environmental surface, even a sharp pointed one, correct?

sorry for the additional post, just overly concerned.

Offline Ann

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #5 on: May 24, 2011, 07:59:38 pm »
Jon,

1. Yes, you're being paranoid. Stop it.

2. There is NO need to test.

3. You assume correctly.

You have NOT had a risk for hiv infection.

Ann
Condoms are a girl's best friend

Condom and Lube Info  

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #6 on: May 24, 2011, 08:06:14 pm »
i appreciate your response Ann.   Sometimes being blunt is the only way to get things through my thick skull.  I will make a point to better understand HIV and its modes of transmission and not return with any no risk situations.

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #7 on: June 11, 2011, 12:58:43 am »
I'm back this time with a possible risk of my own.  I work as a deputy at a small sheriff dept.  Earlier today I was searching the car of a known IV drug user.  I  searched that car up and down because i am certain there were needles in there due to the driver having visible track marks.  I was unable to locate a needle though.  Later i started to worry that while i was moving around in the car I may have been stuck with a needle I didn't see. 

1. Would I have felt a needle if I had been stuck?
2.  Is this a risk for HIV? 
3.  Do I need to test?

 Maybe I am just being paranoid. 

Offline Matty the Damned

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #8 on: June 11, 2011, 04:19:08 am »
I'm back this time with a possible risk of my own.  I work as a deputy at a small sheriff dept.  Earlier today I was searching the car of a known IV drug user.  I  searched that car up and down because i am certain there were needles in there due to the driver having visible track marks.  I was unable to locate a needle though.  Later i started to worry that while i was moving around in the car I may have been stuck with a needle I didn't see. 

1. Would I have felt a needle if I had been stuck?
2.  Is this a risk for HIV? 
3.  Do I need to test?

 Maybe I am just being paranoid. 

Thank you for returning to your own thread. To answer your questions:

1. Yes.
2. No.
3. No.

MtD

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #9 on: July 11, 2011, 06:35:47 pm »
I'm back with a unique question regarding my girlfriends exposure a few months ago.  She was stuck with a dental explorer on the thumb a few months ago.  The instrument had been used on a patient just minutes earlier.  She developed a wart on her thumb where the instrument poked her.  Is this a concern for HIV coinfection.  Can HIV be spread by piggybacking another virus like the common
wart virus.  Do we need to test over this incident due to this wart? 

Offline RapidRod

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #10 on: July 11, 2011, 06:41:55 pm »
What part of your g/f didn't have a risk and doesn't need testing is it you are not comprehending?

Offline Andy Velez

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #11 on: July 11, 2011, 06:43:24 pm »
No, there is no need for testing. There was no risk.

Cut out the drama and get on with your lives. A wart is something for her to discuss with her doctor if it's a concern. It has nothing to do with HIV. Period.

 
Andy Velez

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #12 on: September 01, 2011, 12:44:03 am »
Last night was such a crazy night.  I work in law enforcement and had quiet the scuffle.  I arrested a male of unknown status for assault.  While i attempted to place the male in custody,  he resisted and there was a lot of blood on him.  I was wearing pat down gloves when I arrested him, but the blood soaked through to my hand.  I had an small open scratch on my finger and am concerned about blood to blood contact.  I was wondering if this is a risk and do I need to test?  Could HIV pass through my glove or is this similar to an environmental surface, which is not a risk?  Can I contact HIV in this manner.

jblaze

Offline Rev. Moon

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #13 on: September 01, 2011, 12:59:55 am »
As previously explained to you: no risk. 
"I have tried hard--but life is difficult, and I am a very useless person. I can hardly be said to have an independent existence. I was just a screw or a cog in the great machine I called life, and when I dropped out of it I found I was of no use anywhere else."

Offline Ann

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #14 on: September 01, 2011, 07:18:07 am »
John

You and your girlfriend both should be talking to your respective HR departments about getting some hiv awareness training. The way you keep coming back here to ask NO RISK questions shows the dire need for it at your places of employment.

Ann
Condoms are a girl's best friend

Condom and Lube Info  

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #15 on: December 04, 2011, 06:53:00 pm »
My girlfriend recently had an incident that has concerned me. While attending a college class she sat in a chair and was unaware the chair was covered in blood. The blood soaked through her pants to her skin.  We have no idea how the blood got there. Maybe someone had an accident. Do we need to be concerned about HIV or hep c infection from an incident like this. The blood soaked through her clothes and was on the area of her butt and vagina. Is this a risk?  Does she need to be tested over this incident?

Offline RapidRod

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #16 on: December 04, 2011, 06:57:30 pm »
■Anyone who continues to post excessively, questioning a conclusive negative result or no-risk situation, will be subject to a four week Time Out (a temporary ban from the Forums). If you continue to post excessively after one Time Out, you may be given a second Time Out which will last eight weeks. There is no third Time Out - it is a permanent ban. The purpose of a Time Out is to encourage you to seek the face-to-face help we cannot provide on this forum.

Offline anniebc

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #17 on: December 04, 2011, 08:24:36 pm »
My girlfriend recently had an incident that has concerned me. While attending a college class she sat in a chair and was unaware the chair was covered in blood. The blood soaked through her pants to her skin.  We have no idea how the blood got there. Maybe someone had an accident. Do we need to be concerned about HIV or hep c infection from an incident like this. The blood soaked through her clothes and was on the area of her butt and vagina. Is this a risk?  Does she need to be tested over this incident?

I'm sorry but I'm calling BS on this, if there was enough blood to soak through her trousers and pants trust me  she would have seen it.

Stop wasting time here and go to the lessons and educated yourself on how HIV is and is not transmitted.

Jan
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Never knock on deaths door..ring the bell and run..he really hates that.

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #18 on: January 25, 2012, 06:48:53 pm »
My girlfriend had another occupational exposure at work today that has me concerned.  She was using a sharp instrument on a patient when the instrument slipped and cut her wrist through her glove.  She said that she wasnt worried because there was no blood on the instrument.  I am concerned though because she was wearing gloves with blood and saliva on them.  If the instrument cut through her glove and skin could blood from the patient get into her cut and infect her.
She may have just not noticed blood on the instrument.
1.  Is this a risk for infection ?
2.   Does she need to test over this incident?
3.  Am I just being paranoid and there is no way this can cause infection?

Offline Andy Velez

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #19 on: January 25, 2012, 06:56:19 pm »
Yes, you are being paranoid and self-indulgent. There was absolutely no risk in this latest drama you've come up with.

You've been told very clearly what's risky. If you come back with another of these scenarios you are going to get a Time Out from this site.

Consider yourself warned.
Andy Velez

Offline anniebc

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #20 on: January 25, 2012, 07:36:11 pm »
Stop wasting our time and get yourself educated on HIV transmission.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Never knock on deaths door..ring the bell and run..he really hates that.

Offline Andy Velez

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #21 on: January 25, 2012, 09:05:10 pm »
And you can get educated by reading our lesson on transmission.
Andy Velez

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #22 on: June 25, 2012, 05:12:16 pm »
I recently got blood on my hands from a female of unknown status.  I did not have any cuts or open wounds on my hands. I washed my hands off with hand sanitizer and about 15 minutes later used soap.  Is there chance that the alcohol from the sanitizer could have soaked into my blood stream making a route of transmission for bloodbourne diseases like HIV or hep c?  Is this possible or am I safe using hand sanitizer to wash off blood?  Just concerned tha the alcohol could soak into my blood stream and bring hep c or HIV with it.

Offline Andy Velez

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #23 on: June 25, 2012, 05:36:18 pm »
This more fanciful what-iffing on your part that has absolutely no basis in HIV science.

Nothing in your latest report has put at risk for HIV. Cut it out and get on with your life.
Andy Velez

Offline Ann

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #24 on: June 26, 2012, 08:33:35 am »
John,

Think about what you're asking here. If the alcohol in hand sanitizers facilitated (helped) blood-borne viral transmission, do you really think they'd use the stuff in hospitals? Seriously? It's used in hospitals because it dramatically cuts down on bacterial and viral infection transmission.

In fact in the UK, the cases of hospital-acquired MRSA (along with other infections) have been dramatically reduced since they introduced hand sanitizer dispensers in all wards, next to every door, and launched an awareness campaign to ensure people were using the sanitizer.

I think you've been told this before - but I'll say it again to make sure.

Hiv is a fragile, difficult to transmit virus that is primarily transmitted INSIDE the human body, as in unprotected anal or vaginal intercourse where the virus never leaves the confines of the two bodies.

Once outside the body, small changes in temperature, and pH and moisture levels all quickly damage the virus and render it unable to infect. There's no way hiv would remain intact and able to infect after being subjected to hand sanitizer. Same goes for hep C. And NO, nothing is going to piggy-back on the alcohol as it is absorbed into your skin. Most of it evaporates anyway - it's not absorbed.

As you should also know by now, use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. IT REALLY IS THAT SIMPLE!!!

If you haven't been having unprotected intercourse and haven't been sharing street drug injecting equipment, then you haven't been at risk for hiv. Pretty easy to remember (one would think).

Keep coming back with these outlandish whatiffs, you'll be given a time out. PLEASE CONSIDER YOURSELF WARNED!!!

Ann
Condoms are a girl's best friend

Condom and Lube Info  

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Offline johny blaze

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #25 on: August 14, 2012, 05:44:36 pm »
I am replying today to humbly appologise to the moderators and followers of this forum.  I suffer from PTSD, OCD and anxiety.  I am doing better though. My medication is working and I am no longer having obsesive thoughts.   Please forgive my ignorance of HIV and its routes of transmission.  I was ignorant and I am sorry.  Thank you for the service you provide and I will continue to pray for a cure.                     

Offline Ann

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Re: worried about girlfriends occupational exposure
« Reply #26 on: August 15, 2012, 03:43:28 am »
Johny,

That's good to hear. Hopefully after all the time you've spent on this forum, you're no longer ignorant where hiv is concerned.

Ann
Condoms are a girl's best friend

Condom and Lube Info  

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

 


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