Possible Exposure from Precum?

[q169]

A couple of hours ago, I was fooling around with a friend who tested positive back in March. (He's told me a lot of the details of his treatment, including that he's been on medication, and his viral load has dropped from 10,000 to 75 as of his last test two weeks ago.) We didn't go any further than mutual masturbation, but I know that some of his precum got on the head of my penis--I'm uncut, if that matters--when our penises rubbed together while shifting positions. We stopped a few minutes later and I rinsed off in the bathroom.

A lot of the information I've found online about the risk of HIV in precum is contradictory, and almost all of it involves anal or vaginal exposure. Am I worrying about this needlessly? What's my risk for exposure, and is this enough of a reason to contact my doctor about starting PEP?  (I was on it once about a year ago for a MUCH more serious risk and I've tested negative ever since.)

[jkinatl2]

Hello!

First off, relax.

There is no way you can get HIV from mutually masturbating. Heck, you could use your partner's semen for lube (its not a great lube) and even if his viral load was in the millions, you would not be at risk. HIV is a very fragile virus and can only be sexually transmitted inside the human body. Once it's out, the glycoproteins that form it's outer shell dissolve pretty much instantly, and without those "spikes" it can't engage a vulnerable cell.

Rather than list all of the ways you can fool around and NOT get HIV, I will do the reverse.

Wear a condom for penetrative anal sex with your guy.

And that's it.