"micro wounds" enough to get infected?

[bcnman]

Hi Andy, Ann and all the people who helps this website to be a great place for those who look for knowledge and guideance about HIV. You are doing such a great work!

Andy, Ann, please give me some light about this matter.

A couple of months ago I had an erotic massage (massage + handjob). Nothing to worry about all of this, but there was a moment when the girl without asking me first, started fingering my anus. It was for some seconds, until I told her to stop because i did not like that stuff.

Now my doubts. You always say that fingering is NOT a way of transmission. Ok. But what happens if she had damaged her finger with an open wound and bleeding?

What makes me a lot of confused is this: You also say that transmission happens INSIDE the human body and only with vaginal and anal intercourse, but, my friends, if there is blood in her finger and her finger is inside my anus, then all factors to transmit happens!
First, there is blood, so it CONTAINS the virus (in the case she is positive of course), second, (and this is interesting) finger is INSIDE my body, more than that is inside my anus where you always say that is the place where you can get infected.

Then why you say that fingering is not a way of transmission? I know it is theorical risk, but talking about the situation I explain I am really confused about of this, in this situation you have the infected fluid (blood) and the interaction is happening inside the body, so you have the main facts to make it happen. Or I have misunderstood something?

It is the only "looooow risky" situation I have had, and I am waiting for your replies to decide if I have a test or not. I am thinking too much about this incident these days and that is not good.

Thanks for your help! and sorry if my English is not good enough, I am from Barcelona.

[RapidRod]

Fingering is not a risk, never has been.

[bcnman]

Rapid, I know it is not risk act, but what about in that hypothetical situation that I describe? Could you explain me the facts that make that situation (blood inside anus from damaged finger) is NOT risky?

Explaining the facts would make me understand why it is not risky.

Thanks for your reply!

[RapidRod]

Common sense. NO one is going to stick a bleeding injured finger up your ass.

[bcnman]

Rapid, sure, that is common sense. I mean obviously a really small wound that makes girl dont care about doing that act ...

[bcnman]

Andy, Ann, would be good also to know your thoughts about this. Always referring to the hypothetical situation that finger that penetrated had blood, I already know that in general, fingering is no risk. Thank you all.

[Ann]

bc,

No, your hypothetical situation isn't a risk. Besides, as Rodney says, nobody is going to stick a bleeding, injured finger up your ass. Would you stick YOUR finger up someone's ass if your finger was cut and bleeding?

You need to be using condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, every time, no exceptions until such time as you are in a securely monogamous relationship where you have both tested for ALL sexually transmitted infections together. To agree to have unprotected intercourse is to consent to the possibility of being infected with an STI. Sex with a condom lasts only a matter of minutes, but hiv is forever.

Have a look through all three condom and lube links in my signature line so you can use condoms with confidence.

ALTHOUGH YOU DO NOT NEED TO TEST OVER THIS FINGERING INCIDENT, anyone who is sexually active should be having a full sexual health care check-up, including but not limited to hiv testing, at least once a year and more often if unprotected intercourse occurs.

If you aren't already having regular, routine check-ups, now is the time to start. As long as you make sure condoms are being used for intercourse, you can fully expect your routine hiv tests to return with negative results. Don't forget to always get checked for all the other sexually transmitted infections as well, because they are MUCH easier to transmit than hiv.

Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple.

Ann

[bcnman]

Thanks everybody for your help. Keep doing such a great work!. Best.

[bcnman]

Hi Ann, Andy, Rod and everybody who helps making this site such a great place to get knowledge about HIV.
I have a general question that I think there is much controversy and doubts about it and i think there is not much talk about it.

We all know that in a situation when exists an open wound and blood or sexual fluids in contact, this can turn into the possibility to get infected, right?

My main question is about those "micro wounds" some sites talk about. In your knowledge, Andy, Ann and Rod, there could be the possibility of infection for example in the situation of receiving a blowjob from a person that has blood in his mouth and me having those micro wounds on penis that you cannot even notice they exists? Or on the other hand, to think that there could be a possibility of risk, we always have to talk about wounds that have to be seen perfectly with our eyes?

Everybody here when talking about their situations always say things like "my penis was ok, with no wound" meaning that no way of risk as no wound where HIV could enter in the body. But if sometimes we have those "micro wounds" on penis that appear when having sex, they are enough to have that possibility of risk if getting in touch with blood or sexual fluids? Some sites say it is enough for the virus to enter the body.

Thanks for your help guys. Keep doing such a great work.

[Ann]

bc,

I've merged your new thread into your original thread - where you should post all your additional thoughts or questions. It helps us to help you when you keep all your additional thoughts or questions in one thread.

If you need help finding your thread when you come here, click on the "Show own posts" link under your name in the left-hand column of any forum page.

Please also read through the Welcome Thread so you can familiarize yourself with our Forum Posting Guidelines. Thank you for your cooperation.

Getting a blowjob is NOT a risk for hiv infection, wounds on your penis or no wounds. Not only is saliva not infectious, but it also contains over a dozen different proteins and enzymes that damage hiv and render it unable to infect. Unless you're in the habit of repeatedly punching a person in the mouth before they blow you, you don't need to worry about wounds in their mouth either.

Ann

[bcnman]

Ann, thanks for your quick reply. Thinking about all you say, maybe Im not much clever, but I have to ask you this because I am getting absolutely confused about what has to happen to get infected.

If wounds are not a matter for infection, please tell me what has to happen exactly when someone got infected having anal or vaginal sex. It is not about wounds on penis that take contact with sexual fluids or blood in vagina or anus?

Then which are the facts that make anal and vaginal sex risky? How virus enters the body when having those sexual acts? I always thought it was about wounds or micro wounds on penis getting in contact with infected fluids to allow virus enter the body.

Thanks Ann.

[bcnman]

I mean obviously what have to happen physically to a man to get infected via vagina or anus. How can the virus enter the body, if it is not about wounds. Thanks.

[Ann]

bc,

When the man is the insertive partner, the virus enters through the urethra - that's the hole where you cum/pee through. There is a suspicion that uncircumsized men might be suseptible to infection through a certain type of cell found on the inside of the foreskin. As long as you're wearing a condom and the condom is covering the head of your penis, you don't need to worry about hiv infection.

This is all about the presence of specific cell types and they're only found in specific places. Hiv cannot latch onto and infect just any old cell.

Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple.

Ann

[bcnman]

Interesting, if the entry area for the virus in the whole penis is just the uretra, that makes quite difficult to get infected in the hypothetical situation if there is blood inside mouth of who makes blowjob.

Thanks for your reply Ann.

[bcnman]

Hi there, have a few more questions just to know more and more about all related to HIV.

1. When it is said that the "door" infected fluid uses to enter on penis is urethra, to get that infection, fluid has to just take contact with the beginning of urethra (we can touch that part if you open that hole easily) or in fact, fluid has to travel along the urethra and travel most of its lenght to make the infection possible? So for example, a drop of blood that touch beginning of urethra but dont come more down can infect?

2. When it is said that oral sex is not risky even if person who makes the blowjob has blood on mouth, that situation, what difference has with the risky anal sex? (as you obviously can get infected there because of blood in the anus) because in anal sex amount of blood can be higher due to that act? because saliva on mouth destroys the virus?

3. When you also say that infection must occur inside the body to really happen, you consider mouth an "cavity inside the body" or really not as you consider anus or vagina.

Thanks a lot Rod, Andy, Ann. I can share all this knowledge I am getting with many friends that you could be surprised how poor knowledge of all of this they have. So I think it is great to share it with them.

[Ann]

bc,

Unless you're in the habit of repeatedly punching a person in the mouth before they blow you, there couldn't possibly be enough blood in the mouth for you to get infected through a blowjob.

As said before, not only is saliva not infectious, it also contains over a dozen proteins and enzymes that damage hiv and render it unable to infect. The vagina and anus don't produce saliva.

If you've read the Welcome thread like I asked you to, you will have seen the following posting guideline:

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.

Please consider yourself warned.

Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple.

Ann

[bcnman]

Hi Ann, dont wanna make you fed up with me, I just was curious about how virus enter the urethra and if mouth is considered a cavity inside the body or not. It is not about asking you about if oral sex is risky or not. I know it is not. I just wanted to know a bit more about general stuff. Thanks for your info. Have a good day