POZ Community Forums
HIV Prevention and Testing => Do I Have HIV? => Topic started by: wavecast on June 20, 2006, 01:26:09 pm
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I was at a bar the other night and I've got this small little scab looking thing on my hand. I had quite a few beers and became paranoid about the possibility of being stuck with something. A needle perhaps? With contaminated blood? I've heard alotta stories about people getting stuck with needles in clubs and bars... probably just myths but you never know...
I don't know it's far fetched but I'm just not so sure I would've felt it even if it was a needle since I'd had some drinks.
What would the wound look like if it was a needle stick?
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You've got too much time on your hands. And maybe you've also been drinking too much.
That strikes me as something you might give some thought to instead of this totally trumped up what if scenario you've come up with.
This is not an HIV situation and doesn't bear any further thinking or conversation about.
You can also put your time to better use by reading the lesson on this site about transmission so that you're well informed about the REAL risks in relation to HIV transmission.
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I won't even bother with this one. Seriously, We're not your monkeys.
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So you think a needle prick is definitely something I would've felt?
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So you think a needle prick is definitely something I would've felt?
Wave,
You really need to read the Welcome Thread (http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=220.0). Don't tell me you already have, just read it.
MtD
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wavecast,
You have been coming to this forum since last December (http://www.aidsmeds.com/Fusetalk/messageview.cfm?catid=4&threadid=30666&FTVAR_MSGDBTABLE=) (see the link in my first post in that thread for your December concerns) and I think it's fair for us to expect you to have learned something about hiv transmission by now. Don't you?
You seem to be dwelling on your fear of being infected with hiv. I'm sorry, but the purpose of this forum is education, not mental health care. Please seek out a mental health care professional for some face-to-face help with your hiv anxieties. We cannot help you with that here.
Ann
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wavecast,
You have been coming to this forum since last December (http://www.aidsmeds.com/Fusetalk/messageview.cfm?catid=4&threadid=30666&FTVAR_MSGDBTABLE=) (see the link in my first post in that thread for your December concerns) and I think it's fair for us to expect you to have learned something about hiv transmission by now. Don't you?
You seem to be dwelling on your fear of being infected with hiv. I'm sorry, but the purpose of this forum is education, not mental health care. Please seek out a mental health care professional for some face-to-face help with your hiv anxieties. We cannot help you with that here.
Ann
I know and I have in fact learned alot. But it seems that the more I learn, the more worried I seem to become. I'm pretty sure the mark on my hand was just a harmless scratch as it has seemed to scab over now, but it's just all those little 'what ifs' that make me nuts.
What if i was pricked with something and didn't feel it? I know you call them urban myths but I mean there's lots of twisted people in our society... you never know.
All I really wanted to know was if anybody knew how likely it might be to not feel a needle prick you. I try to make my questions as harmless as possible I don't wanna upset you guys, you've already been a great help to me.
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wave,
Even if you were pricked, this is not a viable transmission route. And yes, these kinds of reports are pretty much urban myths.
YOu didn't have a risk of hiv infection.
I suggest you seek the help of a mental health care professional to work through these hiv anxieties you are having. Hiv education should be making your more relaxed and confident, not making you a nervous wreck.
Hiv sites have become toxic to you and you would do yourself a favour by staying away from them, this one included.
There's nothing more we can do for you here. Please get the face-to-face help and support you need. We can't do that for you here.
Ann
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wave,
Even if you were pricked, this is not a viable transmission route.
You're right in everything you say I know that. :-\
But just out of curiosity why wouldn't it be a viable transmission route?
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You're right in everything you say I know that. :-\
But just out of curiosity why wouldn't it be a viable transmission route?
I've read through the lessons but still can't seem to figure out why a needle stick in this kind of setting wouldn't qualify as a viable route.
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I've read through the lessons but still can't seem to figure out why a needle stick in this kind of setting wouldn't qualify as a viable route.
???
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Sorry to bug you guys again, but I've got a question about the use of dirty toilet paper.
I was using a public washroom the other day for #2 and when I went to clean up - I noticed a some blood on the paper from what was probably a small irritation down there. This freaked me out because I used the toilet paper there to clean up and before I did, the roll had fallen on the floor. I picked it up right away not thinking much about it... but used it anyways.
So is there anything to worry about? I'm just worried about taking something that had touched a dirty bathroom floor and rubbing it over a bleeding cut or sore. I hate these filthy bathrooms in the city but it was an emergency.
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READ THE WELCOME THREAD.
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I have. I just thought I'd ask this here because you people seem to know alot about all types of STDs.
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This is an HIV website.
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I'm aware of this. But on numerous occasions I've seen people talk about things that SHOULD be taken into account when a chance of HIV transmission was non-existant. I thought that perhaps I'd ask about the toilet paper thing here.
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Contact your local STD clinic to answer that question. It has nothing to do with HIV.
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Wavecast,
It is a myth that you can pick up STIs from any surface in a public toilet. They are called sexually transmitted infections for a reason - and that reason is they are transmitted through sexual contact - not contact with surfaces in a public place.
You can pick up bacteria like E.coli from dirty surfaces, so always wash your hands after going potty. OK?
Ann
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I wasn't actually worried about anything ON the toilet seat, but rather what could've been on the floor of that filthy washroom. The paper touched the floor before I used it (when the roll fell out of the holder) and THEN I discovered I had a small bleeding irritation down there after I cleaned up :(
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oh yeah! we understood that in your first post. '
for you, it's still no risk.
I fail to understand why you all continue to repeat the same exact questions that have been already answered.
The answers won't change no matter how many times you ask nor in what fashion.
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wavecast,
You didn't read what I wrote. I said ANY surface in a public toilet. A public toilet is another way of saying public washroom. I didn't mean the actual porcelain throne alone, I meant the whole shebang.
STIs, including hiv, are NOT transmitted via surfaces in public buildings, whether it is a toilet, a washroom, a doorknob or toilet paper.
If you cannot let go of the concerns you have brought to us, it may be time for you to seek the assistance of a mental health care professional. We cannot give you the face-to-face support you need. There is nothing more we can do for you here.
Ann
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Sorry sorry I guess that people from the UK just say 'toilet' instead of 'bathroom' - I misunderstood, My fault sorry. And thanks for the reply Ann.
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May not seem as silly as you all think.
I traipsed a needle from my train station to my home in Oct 1999. I may or may not have stood on it in my stocking feet after changing from my work clothes. The needle and green transluscent plastic housing were hard to see against the grey loop pile carpet in my hallway as I wandered to the kitchen. I walked back and forth from my room to the kitchen a few times. It was only after being home 15 minutes that my flatmate spotted it. Why he did not say anything immediately was down to his Asbergers Syndrome and assumption "It was your rubbish as you work in a hospital" so he left it there for me to pick up. I sat on my bed staring at my feet looking for a jab mark. I did see a tiny puncture on my left instep but figured surely I would have felt it. But they are so sharp you may not feel it.
I rang the police to report the whole thing and asking who should clean the station which was opposite a needle exchange clinic, which lacked injecting rooms. The cop was rather dismissive and said that had I stood on it I had a 1 in 4 chance of it carrying HIV. I would be more likely to come down with Hep C or something similar first. I kept the needle in an empty plastic water bottle for later analysis but disposed of about a month later as I had no symptoms. I also discussed it with an HIV Virologist I play soccer with. He said the same thing as the cop.
Approx two months later I feel very ill, lost 20 pounds and took three weeks off work. I visited my local doctor 4 months later as my perotid glands grew cysts and my cheeks had visible swellings. I asked about HIV and mentioned the needle incident. The hospital doctor, a top Maxillofacial surgeon, was placating me with the facts that as a straight man who had usually practised safe sex and never injected drugs it was not worth testing me. Two years and various illnesses later I had it confirmed in Oct 2002. I went on meds in Aug 2004.
Some doctors say no way. The Dec 1999 flu was probably my system collapsing after the 10 year latent phase. And I caught it from a condom breakage in the late 80's ( I'm so butch!). My actual specialist, perhaps the best HIV Consultant in Britain, was not so hasty. He thinks that a fresh needle caught in the cleats of my boots could feasibly keep the blood hermetically sealed until my foot was impaled against it. The Dec 1999 'Millenium Bug Flu' could have been my sero-conversion.
So there you have it. I can't prove anything, can't sue the Train Operator or the Needle Exchange Clinic. Only if I had kept a clean blood speciman from before the incident could I prove anything. The official line is that the chances of transmission this way are 0.5%. All very well for a medic in a white coat to trot this out but when you are the one who stood on it you become aware that these 1 in 200 unlucky people do exist. Had it happened on ward with alcohol swabs etc I may have been OK.
Has this person worried about the 'Pricks' in bars actual had a test? Her paranoia reminds me of an ex girlfriend from New York I dated while she was in London in 1988. Her flat was next to a famous Gay hotel in Earl's Court. She came to me worried as she heard that her flat shares the water supply with the hotel. She said she got splashed when she flushed the loo and wondered if there was any chance of HIV. I laughed my head off. A top college grad talking like a retarded person. Well it was 1988. Surely we still don't have this paranoia in 2006.
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AldousOrwell, nice story, but you've had other risky incidents that you can't say without a reasonable doubt that you didn't get HIV another way.
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he Dec 1999 flu was probably my system collapsing after the 10 year latent phase.
With respect, HIV does not have a "latent" phase. Surely the specialist you play soccer with would have pointed that out.
Aldous, (your name notwithstanding) your story strikes me as dangerously anecdotal and of no relevance to the AIDSMEDS forums and this thread in particular. Clearly you have issues and a particular agenda that you're pushing. You should either start your own thread or, even better, take your stuff elsewhere.
In fact I view your comments with such seriousness that I've reported them to the Moderators.
MtD
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So much for feeling like we are all in this together.
In response to my message of yesterday telling a totally true story about a 'possible' needle stick incident, I think I need to make my position more clear. I'm not being pius or judgemental, just honest.
I'm not pushing any hidden agenda. The criticisms seem to contradict each other. One viewer disputes my 'latent' phase. Call it what you will 'Incubation' or 'Ignorance is Bliss' phase you know what I mean. I write of the time between Sero-conversion and showing symptoms. I thought stating this alternative scenario makes it clear that I really have no way of knowing how or when I got infected , via the needle or my knob.
I am stating the actual views of qualified healthcare professionals. I have to consider all opinions. On a more serious note I hope it was through the needle at least that way I have eliminated the chances of onward transmission prior to 1999. Although I always insisted on condoms. Coming from clean green nuclear-free New Zealand to England in 1987 I had already had enough paranoia instilled in me via the media prior to coming here. I have walked out of bedrooms when women have not had condoms but were willing to have sex anyway. My attitude was 'How many other guys have they said that to?' It is indeed a bitter irony considering the current behaviour of my 'presumably' negative straight friends, that I'm the positive one. But that's life.
I did not expect such an unsympathetic backlash and certainly did not expect to be threatened with censorship by way of being reported to the moderator. I think my comments are indeed most relevant to this thread even if they are a counter point to all the other doubters.
I think the thing that hacks other positive people off is this notion that I'm saying I've got 'Good AIDS' through an innocent accident. I am reluctant to tell this story to people in my support group for this very reason. All I'm doing is relating actual events as they occurred. You have to admit the timing is very suspicious. 6-8 weeks between both events, exposure in Oct 99 to sero-conversion illness in Dec 99.
Perhaps I should start another thread. The fact that people like me are not supposed to exist. I recently answered a plea from a Greek journalist from a conservative newspaper in Athens. She said that she has yet to meet a heterosexual positive man other than IV drug users. I explained that stigma stops them getting medical help let alone going to her support group. I pointed out that Straights are TEN TIMES MORE LIKELY TO DIE THAN GAYS as they ignore the signs and present too late to be saved. That is why there are so few of us.
It suits all other parties to treat us as invisible. The Gay community see us as a threat to limited charitable funds and clinical resources. The governments don't want to throw cold water on the 'Commercialisation of Sex and the Sexualisation of Commerce' It suits big business and state alike to kept the numbers down by ignoring us or letting us die, and at the same time using sex to sell practically everything from ice cream to paint.
I think all affected groups need to come together to broaden the debate and finally take this virus seriously. I'm not homophobic but I sense a certain heterophobia out there. I find this shouting down very counter productive.
Take care Aldous
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Aldous,
I'd like to invite you to post in the Living With HIV Forum (http://forums.poz.com/index.php?board=2.0) rather than this forum. Your post is not really appropriate in this thread or forum. Here in the Am I Infected forum, we stick to first-tier, peer-reviewed, quantifiable, researched and documented science when it comes to hiv transmission issues.
I am not questioning your theory on how you became infected - but at the end of the day, I'm sure you can agree that it is just that - theory. Stories like this, when related in this forum, only cause panic unnecessarily.
I hope you can understand where I'm coming from - as I can understand where YOU are coming from. Please, post in the appropriate forum.
There are plenty of people waiting to accept and welcome you to the Living forum, with no judgements, just support.
Ann
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http://www.thebody.com/cdc/hoaxes.html (http://www.thebody.com/cdc/hoaxes.html)
http://aids.about.com/od/hivprevention/a/urbanmyth.htm (http://aids.about.com/od/hivprevention/a/urbanmyth.htm)
http://aids.about.com/cs/expertadvice/f/myth.htm (http://aids.about.com/cs/expertadvice/f/myth.htm)
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/mayhem/gaspump.asp (http://www.snopes.com/horrors/mayhem/gaspump.asp)
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/pinprick.asp (http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/pinprick.asp)
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/mayhem/payphone.asp (http://www.snopes.com/horrors/mayhem/payphone.asp)
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Aldous, I'm not sure what you're trying to say?
I take it you're HIV positive and you think it was because of stepping on a needle filled with HIV+ blood?
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So it's Wavecast
You have got a lot to answer for. I read your new thread topic and Needle Stick leapt out at me so I read on.
I'm new to the forum world and naively typed out my own 'Very Freak' accident details without realising the hornet's nest I was about to stir up. Check it out on 'Living with HIV' under 'Pecking Order'.
I tend to write from a stream of conciousness, almost sub-consciousness, I'm afraid my story may have scared the bejezzers out of a small minority of untested people who I forgot may log on.
In regard to your question. Yes I'm positive I'm Positive but not so positive how. For me to have caught it in the way I described would have taken a combination of several low odds occurences so seems unlikely. I doubt one could even recreate the same scenario CSI stlyle. There are issues about the virus surviving in the hollow needle, presumably under my heel, while I walked about 500 yards from the station in the wet. Still I did fall very ill in typical time frame so the timing kind of points to it. That's kind of why I wrote about it in the first bloody place as I never have before. Is that not the point of forums, sorry fora for the pedants out there.
Like I wrote before about my old girlfriend and the toilet water you seem to be unduly worried. If you are do what I did and get a test. It's all the rage these days.
I did not mean to scare you. Perhaps this website is best reserved for those who know they are positive.
Take care Aldous
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Aldous, I agree with Ann that you should talking in the LIVING WITH section.
While I do certainly sympathize with your having become infected, there is nothing in what you have written which conclusively deals with how you were actually infected.
It's important to say that here because so many people who come to this section are worried about whether they are infected or not. I'm afraid that reading what you have written, however unintentional on your part will feed into some of their worst paranoid and unfounded fears.
So I must state again that while we know you are HIV+, it is absolutely not clear how that came about and the conclusion you imply as the cause is not one which has been documented in any recognized scientific way.
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Hi Andy
I have moved to the Living With HIV section. I was just signing off on this issue out of courtesy.
People must remember that in a global population of almost 5 Billion of which about 'only' 40 million have the virus their chances of being positive are almost infinitessimally low.
Perhaps it would not be a bad idea to encourage testing even among 'hypochondriacs' or less informed people.
Forewarned is Forearmed.
Cheers Aldous
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Perhaps it would not be a bad idea to encourage testing even among 'hypochondriacs' or less informed people.
Aldous, we do encourage anyone who is sexually active to have routine sexual health care check-ups at least once a year.
Ann
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So I finally did it. I went to get a blood test and full checkup. Took about every ounce of courage I had, but it's done. I guess we'll see what happens.
I was nervous about putting a needle in me though, the nurse who took the blood seemed to be in a huge rush and wasn't very gentle about it. I hope she wasn't careless with that needle before she stuck it in me. I didn't even see where she got it from which kinda makes me nervous.
And also, the nurse didn't wear gloves. I just realized this now...
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Seek out the help of a mental health professional. You're now going out of bounds for us to help.
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yeah, I see where this is going.
This site is toxic to you at this point. And from here, it's a slippery slope to full-frontal crazy. You can, at any time, exit the ride.
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Why is it so crazy to think that a careless nurse might've put me at risk for some type of an infection if she used a needle that wasn't discarded of properly?
And isn't it improper practice to not wear gloves? If she was doing that God knows what else she could've done.
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::sigh::
I respectfully withdraw from this conversation.
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Wave,
Keep it up and earn yourself a time out.
Nurses aren't in the business of infecting people with anything. If you cannot accept that fact, then seek the assistance of a mental health care provider. We cannot help you with your health care related anxieties here. If it takes giving you a time out to encourage you to get help through the appropriate channels, then that's fine by me.
Ann
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I am a worrier myself but agree with the others that it'd prolly be best for you to turn your attention online elsewhere. Too much of this site for those in a worry well phase is not good.
Just a quick comment on the above posts regarding the needle stick, I think everyone would agree that it would be much more common for soemone who worked in a healthcare setting to become accidentally stuck with a needle than someone who is drinking beer at a local pub. As an alcoholic myself, I have often times worried about possible non-events during those times when the memory becomes a little fuzzy with Budwesier or Tequila. I'm sure your tests will be fine, if this is the only incident (non-incident) you are worried about I'm willing to guarantee it.
Next time you go to log on to this site, Google a page about a favorite hobby or a favorite movie, sports team, etc.
Take care, Everything will be fine.
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Hawk,
You should stick to your own thread and leave the giving of advice to others.
Regards,
MtD
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Lets do a little experiment.........it may help you determine your "needle stick" risk. Go into your fridge and grab a 6 pack........drink them. Get a clean, unwrapped, sterile needle........and gab in into your hand. Did you feel that? thought so! People arent running around with needles infecting other people, get a grip!
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HIVsexpert, sick to your own thread with your thoughts and worries.
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Hawk,
You should stick to your own thread and leave the giving of advice to others.
Regards,
MtD
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Excuse me? This was not a worry, it was a response to a question. Who designated you the sole advice giver on the site?
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Just keep all your thoughts and worries in your own thread.
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I might say the same thing to you.............you've posted an awful lot of responses to wave before I was even here, whats your excuse? Why don't you "create your own thread and stay in it"?
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Enought said, I'll let Ann handle it. You've violated the guidelines once already.
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I might say the same thing to you.............you've posted an awful lot of responses to wave before I was even here, whats your excuse? Why don't you "create your own thread and stay in it"?
He knows what he is talking about and give valid advice - how useful was your post?
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Um, worried well people, especially those with open threads, tend to sort of clog up the system here when they attempt to give advice. Mainly because we have to double check their supposed facts to a degree far and above those given by seasoned respondents. It's not some exclusive club. Its simply an agenda-free zone reliant on the science.
At least, that's what it is to me.
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His "posts" weren't useful..........except to belittle and insult the person, aside from the fact that the poster was way overboard. Better to not say anything at all. Rapidrod.........please refrain from hijacking others threads.....if you have a problem with me, you can address me in mine or through a private message. Thanks in advance!
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His "posts" weren't useful..........except to belittle and insult the person, aside from the fact that the poster was way overboard. Better to not say anything at all. Rapidrod.........please refrain from hijacking others threads.....if you have a problem with me, you can address me in mine or through a private message. Thanks in advance!
Suggesting someone seek the help of a mental health professional is not meant to be insulting and is often very therapeutic for someone suffering from such intense, irrational HIV related anxiety. This kind of fear often needs to be treated professionally and can't be helped by "surfing the web."
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Sexpert,
It's time you shut up and stopped giving gratuitous advice. The same goes for Blackhawk. You're hijacking threads and have no credibility in this forum. You need to know that RapidRod is a recognised and longstanding AIDSMEDS expert and doesn't answer to you. He is also a clinical health professional.
Leave the giving of advice to those of us who know what we're doing.
MtD
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Hi guys, I know I've come to you before with concerns that weren't very serious - or not serious at all. But last night something happened that I think might have put me at a significant level of risk.
I was out with a girl and we were kinda fooling around and play-fighting when she bit me quite hard on one of my fingers. I don't think she meant to hurt me but when i examined my finger the skin had been broken - it wasn't gushing blood but it WAS bleeding when I applied pressure. I didn't see any of her blood on the wound, but I can't be sure there weren't small amounts. The actual cut was small but it was enough to make me bleed.
Now I know saliva on it's own isn't infectious but how significant is my risk if she were to have traces of blood in her mouth? Her lips looks like they might've been chapped and bleeding slightly, which would constitute blood to blood contact.
Please bear with me on this and advise me as to what I should do... if I should wait 3 months and test...
This is really breaking me down. I was finally beginning to overcome my irrational fear of this and BANG - this has to happen.
Thanks in advance for the help. You guys have been great to me in the past I'm hoping you'll help out just one more time.
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wave,
You didn't have a risk of hiv infection through this bite. IF you had just punched her in the mouth BEFORE she bit you, and she was bleeding profusely, then you MIGHT have a TINY risk. But, as she wasn't dripping with blood when she bit you, you didn't have a risk. Seriously.
Ann
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Hello Ann. Once again, thank you for your patience. Your words are comforting as usual.
So as I take it, unless there were large VISIBLE amounts of her blood all over my finger after the bite, then my risk is nonexistent? I sure didn't punch her beforehand lol. Her lips just looked sorta cracked.
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wave,
No, you didn't have a risk by any stretch of the imagination. Cracked lips do not transmit hiv.
Ann
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Thank you Ann. I take it this wasn't a small risk, it was a no risk situation and therefore warrants no testing...
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wave,
NO risk.
NO test.
Ann
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At the risk of getting kicked off these forums, I've got a question for Ann and whatever other experts might want to add their input.
I've made some constructive progress in the realm of my HIV phobias as of late. Usually I'd be on this board quite often - and lately I haven't come here at all. I've been able to keep my irrational fears at bay through the advice I've received. I've also been able to pass on the knowledge I've received here to others who are greatly misinformed about what they think are risks.
What I came to ask about might qualify as an environmental surface exposure, which I KNOW is in fact no risk - but I thought that clarification might just be a good idea since it wasn't just any old ordinary surface.
Recently our office changed locations. Our new washrooms aren't the most sanitary ones around but that's cool... I still use them, use the toilet paper there freely... no risk of anything from washrooms or toilets as I know. [told ya I've made progress!]- The other day as I was washing my hands I slammed my knuckle against the tip of the faucet and I gave myself a nice cut that bled immediately. Now of course this isn't anything I'd normally worry about, but this faucet is like a razor-sharp edge that I'm sure didn't only injure me. It's sharp as hell and I can't see why it was made the way it was. Definitely not a piece of quality faucet craftsmanship!
Anyways I just wanted to check with you guys and see how risky getting cut with something that may have cut other people is. If it was any other washroom I really wouldn't care - but it's just the sheer volume of people who use that faucet that worries me. This would be similar to sharing a razor blade if there was another man's blood on the faucet... so I thought I would just check it out here.
Thanks for reading and for your patience. It's more appreciated than you know.
And also happy new year to everyone.
p.s. Ann I'll be visiting the U.K. soon - any suggestions for a not-so-good-with-directions tourist?
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Zero risk again.
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I suspect you already know the answer(s) you will get to your latest question.
You've been hanging around here long enough and had enough information given to you to know that you were not in any way at risk in the latest situation you have posed.
Period. End of story.
This site is not for you to just drop in anytime and as often as you feel like to chat about your latest non-risk.
Consider yourself warned.
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Alright Andy I understand. Thanks for your patience.
I had another question to ask you - it's not about any exposure or risk or non risk I had or anything like that. Just a general inquiry about something I saw on TV. I hope either you or Ann will be kind enough to answer. I tried searching the forums for something like this before posting but I couldn't find anything.
I was watching a UFC fight with some friends of mine this past weekend, a couple of which practice mixed martial arts themselves. One of the fighters was cut pretty badly - and since much of this sport involves close contact grappling on the ground, there were a few drops of blood that landed on the other fighter's face. My friend asked "I wonder if these guys are required to get tested for HIV?"
I know sports aren't a risk because of sweat not being infectious in any way, I'm just curious as to what the line is between 'no risk' and 'risk' in terms of fighters getting each others blood in their eyes? Would just a drop require testing? Or would it have to be many many drops? Does the actual amount matter at all?
Just something that had me curious. Not that I'm fighting like this or anything. Just an inquiry.
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No, there is no REQUIREMENT that athletes get tested in relation to the situation you mentioned or many like ones which come up in various sports.
There are no reliably documented cases of transmission in that manner.
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Never been known to happen, I see. So in terms of the quantity is it because there's just not enough blood? I'm just trying to understand what is and isn't a risk in terms of the amount.
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Can anybody field my last inquiry, please?
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wave,
It's because successful hiv transmission needs to take place INSIDE the human body, most usually during unprotected anal or vaginal intercourse. Hiv is very fragile and once it finds itself outside the human body, it quickly becomes damaged and unable to infect.
As Andy told you, no one has EVER become infected in a sports setting - or even a street brawl. It just doesn't happen that way.
Ann
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Thanks for the response Ann. I realize that it's one of those things that just doesn't happen, but is it specifically because the blood would be exposed to too much of a hostile environment? Or does it have to do with the amounts of blood involved? That's what I was unsure of.
I know the virus can't survive outside the host - but a drop might sometimes go from one fighters face into another guys eye.
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Sorry my thread kinda got lost. Ann or Andy might you have an answer for my last question? Thankyou! You've done worlds for my overall knowledge of this. I hope you don't mind adding to that knowledge with additional inquiries I have. The more I'm able to understand the better.
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Wavecast, there has never been anyone in sports, including street fighting, that has been infected by another competitor.
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Yeah I understand. I'm just trying to wrap my head around the differences between lets say an MMA figher or a boxer who gets a drop of blood in their eye from an opponents fesh cut - and a health care worker who gets blood in their eye from a patient. That's the difference I'm looking to understand. There's obviously a difference since there's never been a transmission related to sports, I just want to understand what it is. Thanks Rod.
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You aren't a health care worker and you aren't a fighter so that makes one less worry for you.
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wave,
There's never been an infection in a health care worker from blood in the eye either. So there is no difference.
Ann
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What? I thought cases like that HAD been documented? They list the risk as like 1/1000 or something like that and mention how the membranes in your eye are a means of transmission? I was under the impression that it had been documented... Am I misinformed?
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Post the link to where you saw that there are documented cases of blood splatter in eyes is documented to have caused HIV transmission.
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Hi Rod. I was basically saying that every time you hear about "occupational exposures" - you usually see that 'blood to eye' contact is lumped in as a risk.
"Some health-care workers have become infected after being stuck with needles containing HIV-infected blood or, less frequently when infected blood comes in contact with a worker's open cut or is splashed into a worker's eyes or inside their nose."
That's taken from the CDC. It doesn't really show a documented case - but it's the only reason I was under the impression that there have been cases documented.
Anyways I was just curious what the difference was between a health care worker's eye being exposed to blood and an athlete's eye. That was what my initial question was driving at.
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Can you guys please help me understand this? Thanks.
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There have been apx. 900,000 occupational exposures and less than 100 have become positive. Now do you think the risk is great? That's blood in the eyes, needle stick, busted test tubes, lacerations by bone, and suture needles. As you can see it's not that great of a concern.
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So if it hasn't been documented as ever actually happening - how can they lump it in with the other needle sticks and bone lacerations? Is it because it's theoretical only?
Also - is the amount of blood a factor in an eye exposure? Because surely some athletes, fighters & boxers have gotten small droplets of blood in their eyes before.
Thanks for your patience. I'm just trying to get as good an understanding of this as I can.
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If you want to be the first documented case of hiv infection from blood to eye, then be it. Boxers that are HIV didn't get it thru the eye.
Milker.
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Wavecast, we're done with you here. You did not have a risk, so it's time for you to move on.
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Rod as a matter of fact, the questions I'm asking this time (above few posts) are NOT to do with a risk I had (or think I had) - but more to do with areas of this topic that I truthfully don't understand and would like to wrap my head around a little more thoroughly.
I'm sorry if my curiosity has offended you. It isn't my intent to do so.
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Thing is we are here to help people with REAL risks. We arent here as paid educators of the masses. if you want the knowledge you should work to get it rather than take the easy road by asking us. Also, continually responding to your quest for knowledge taxes the precious little time we have to help those who really need it.
So please, study some other way than just asking us. The information is out there if you want to find it.
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I understand that. And I appreciate what the volunteers do here. Believe me I'm not ignorant to the fact that people go out of their way from the goodness of their hearts. It's just that so much of the information out there is contradictory and confusing at best. I trust what's said on this site - which is why I often turn to these forums for answers.
If the answers to my questions were out there - I wouldn't bother anybody here. It's not due to laziness.
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Regardless of the information that is or is not out there, you are not speaking of a risk directly related to you. We can't help you any further.
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Hello I've been away so I hadn't had a chance to respond. Can somebody clarify why it is that certain experts on this site say that transmission through the eye happens rarely, and others say that it has NEVER been known to happen? I mean it's one or the other, right?
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For the record there has never been a documented case of HIV transmission via the ocular route i.e. through the eye. Tears contain a substance called lysozyme which neutralises HIV, the fragile virus which causes AIDS.
You may draw from that answer what you will.
Having said that, I would remind you that you didn't have a risk to begin with and so HIV is not a concern in your case. As you have been told before, it's time you moved on. We cannot help you any further.
MtD
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Oh is that right? That's a new one I had never heard about that before. I was reading in another thread and Mr. Velez said that it happens "rarely" and I obviously gathered from that that it has in fact occured.
So why all the confusion about blood to eye contact as a mode of transmission? Even the damn CDC implies that it's happened! If it's never been documented then why isn't is as readily dismissed as things like kissing?
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Wave,
Am I Infected is not a discussion forum. I and the other experts are not here to bandy words with you about the various modes of transmission real or imagined. People come here to post their concerns about risky experiences they've had and we answer their questions.
I have rendered my answer to your question. As I said you may draw from it what you will.
One other thing, don't you dare take that pissy tone of voice with me. We cannot help you any further. Move on.
This conversation is over.
MtD
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Matty, tone is clearly lost on these forums. I took no 'pissy attitude' towards you whatsoever. I apologize that you understood me as such.
I appreciate your answer and wasn't trying to challenge it.
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Wave, I don't know which other thread you are referring to.
I would certainly consider transmission via the eye to be more in the theoretical category rather than an actual ongoing risk. Could transmission happen in that manner? Yes. Does it happen? So rarely beyond rare that it is not a matter for serious consideration.
It is mistakenly focusing on that kind of rarity which fuels unwarranted and obsessive fears about everyday life events and actions as a means of transmission.
We know from experience in the epidemic that unprotected intercourse is the big issue sexually in terms of risk. A very small number proportionally and in total of transmissions happen through healthcare-related accidents.
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Andy, the thread to which I was referring was this one: http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=2650.msg29755#msg29755
I can understand what a theoretical risk is. But when you say ocular transmission happens "so rarely beyond rare" it implies that it HAS in fact taken place, even if just once or twice.
That's what I was getting at. The other experts say it's NEVER been documented. You say it happens rarely. It can't be both.
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wave,
You need to understand what it means when a case is "documented". Being documented means that there is absolutely no question of how transmission took place. As far as I am aware (and I've looked), there is not one single documented case of transmission via infected fluids getting into someone's eye.
There may have been people who thought they were infected this way, but it has never been proven - usually because they engaged in other risky behaviours, ones that are MUCH more likely to lead to transmission and infection.
You're more likely to stumble across a multi-million winning lottery ticket lying in a gutter than you are to become infected this way. Now chill, please.
Ann
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Ann I was wondering if you might clarify something for me please. When a person seroconverts, I know they may or may not show symptoms and it's no way to determine anything. Now let's say somebody does show symptoms within 3 weeks, and they were in fact due to infection. Does that mean after that point antibodies would in fact be detectable through a test even if it was before the standard 3 month window?
I was reading the lessons but couldn't find an exact answer to this.
Thanks a lot for taking the time to read this.
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Most people if they are going to test positive, will do so in six weeks. Just because you think you serocoverted does not mean that there will be enough antibodies in your system for the tests to detect.
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I understand. Is there an amount of time that these symptoms usually last? Can they come and go in one day? Or would they last longer?
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No, they to not come on one day and go. They come on 2-4 weeks after infection and last 1-2 weeks.
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I see. The lessons say that sometimes the symptoms are so mild that they're simply dismissed as nothing. Just thought this might have meant they could possibly come and go within a day or two.
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wave,
The symptoms that may or may not accompany seroconversion is the physical reaction to the process the body goes through to produce antibodies; it is not a reaction to the virus itself. Some people observe no such physical reaction in their bodies. This is why testing is so important when there has been a risk, regardless of the presence or absence of physical symptoms.
Most often, if a person tests for hiv antibodies during the process of antibody production, the test will come back as negative or inconclusive as the levels of antibodies are not yet high enough to produce a definite positive result.
The majority of people who have actually been infected will have produced enough antibodies to result in a positive result by the end of six weeks. A negative result at this time MUST be confirmed at three months, simply to catch the RARE person who takes a little longer than six weeks to reach the necessary level and test positive.
However, where you're concerned, this is all purely academic as in order to become infected with hiv, you must first have a risk. You have not had a risk.
Do you need a time out to get the message? You have not had a risk for hiv infection. Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you never will either.
As for your hiv related anxiety/obsession, please see a mental health care professional. We cannot help you with that here.
Ann
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Ann I won't lie to you. Something happened 3 weeks ago that set me off. I didn't want to mention it or ask about it because I've got a good feeling that I'd be dismissed as paranoid.
Yesterday afternoon I began to feel tired with a slight headache. Today the headache is gone but I still feel slight fatigue. That's why I asked about how long these symptoms do last if they are in fact present.
I know a test is the only way to be sure, but I just wanted confirmation on the duration of the symptoms if any at all.
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Wave,
Unless you had unprotected anal or vaginal intercourse, you're likely worrying over nothing, yet again.
Please get yourself some face to face help with these unnecessary worries of yours. We cannot help you with them here.
Ann
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There was no unprotected sex. And at the time I was not worrying. This incident has to do with a needle prick I felt 3 weeks ago when I was out. I didn't want to mention it because people here will think I'm either making things up or overreacting. But I know what I felt and it felt like a needle stabbed me. And now I get this fatigue and headache exactly 3 weeks after.
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Wave,
You are not going to become infected this way, as you have been REPEATEDLY told. Keep posting and I'll give you that time out. No kidding.
Please get yourself into counseling/therapy for this obsession. It isn't healthy and we can't help you with it here.
For the LAST time, you haven't had a risk for hiv infection. No way, no how, regardless if you were stuck by a sharp object or not. Hiv just isn't transmitted in this way outside of a medical setting - and even then it's RARE.
This is you LAST warning. Get help outside this forum. You will no longer be permitted to use this site the way you have been. This is NOT an hiv situation. Never has been, from the moment you joined.
Ann
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I understand Ann. And I didn't come here to get into this. I just asked about the symptom thing. All I'm going to say is that it's possibly being deliberately stabbed with a hypodermic needle that worries me. I'm fully aware that a sharp object or other type of needle isn't a risk.
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Wave,
We've been addressing your needle concerns for more than 12 months now. This has really gone way beyond what we generally put up with.
Clearly you would benefit from seeing a mental health worker. I urge you to get the help you so obviously need.
MtD
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Matty that might not be a bad idea. The thing is that I wasn't worried about anything during the time that lead up to this incident.
I admit it's not the 1st time I've worried about getting pricked by somebody with a needle. But this time I actually felt a jab in my back. And now 3 weeks later I've developed a headache, mild chills, and fatigue (lasted for about 4 days now and are starting to go away). Just seems like a really big coincidence. Too big to ignore.
I know the responses will say there's no risk but I mean if a healthcare worker can be infected through these accidents then why am I so immune? As I see it the virus doesn't know where it is. A needle stick is a needle stick.
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Wave,
Clearly we're not getting through. I cannot possibly see how we can help you any further. I'm flicking this one to the Moderators for review.
MtD
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No, a needle sick is not just a needle stick. Out of 900,000 occupational exposures only about 150 have contracted HIV since 1984. Those are people that actually work with syringes full of blood and that is a combined number, not just needle sticks. It's time that you move on and get professional help. You are beyond the scope of this forum.
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wave,
I don't see the point in continuing this with you. Please get yourself a good therapist to discuss your issues with. We cannot help you with that here.
Ann
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...and further to what Ann has said, consider yourself warned.
If you continue to come here with this kind of what if and handwringing that you want us to take seriously, we won't. And you'll be given a time out and possibly banned from the site.
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wave,
I don't see the point in continuing this with you. Please get yourself a good therapist to discuss your issues with. We cannot help you with that here.
Ann
I understand I was given a time out for this, but all I was looking for was an answer as to whether or not I should go for a test. When Ann said that I can't be infected from a sharp object, I thought she may have assumed that I thought ANY sharp object was a risk and I know that's not the case. That's why I posted again, I wanted to make it clear that it wasn't just any old sharp object I'm worried about.
I was specifically concerned about the being stabbed with a needle. And i developed a headache and fatigue with muscle aches exactly 3 weeks later I felt that sharp pain in my back. I would've dismissed this if it hadn't been for those symptoms. All of it just seems like too much of a coincidence to ignore and I'm just really worried here and a few words of advice would really be appreciated.
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You're going to be banned permanently if you don't stop with the questions that have already been answered.
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Wavecast
It would seem that a 56 day TO didn't work..we can no longer help you here because you have refused to listen to all the advise you were given.
I have placed a permenant ban on your account.
Jan