HIV virus
My question is does HIV remain active in disinfectant chemical like barber dipped new razor blade in that disinfectant in which they dipped razor instrument without blade also after shaving other customers as barber told me they use to change disinfectant in jar every 2-3 days.
Hi There,
Thank you for using AIDS Vancouver as your source of HIV/AIDS related information.
HIV can only survive a matter of seconds outside the body. HIV would likely not survive long enough in the jar for it to be a possible mode of transmission. A body fluid (in this case blood) is also needed in order for HIV transmission to occur. This means that the razor would have to have a large amount of HIV+ blood on it to pose a risk to begin with. HIV also needs direct access to enter the bloodstream. So even if the razor did have HIV+ blood on it, your barber would have to have cut you fairly severely in order for the HIV to have access to your bloodstream. Considering all the above, I would say that the incident you have described provides no risk of HIV transmission.
However, if the razor blade was not new, the incident you have described poses a slightly higher risk for HEP C transmission. HEP C lives outside the body for a longer period of time than HIV. However, HEP C still needs direct access to the bloodstream in order to be transmitted. Dipping a new blade into a disinfectant solution which is changed every few days however, does not pose you any risk of HIV transmission.
Of course, if you are unsure of your HIV status and are sexually active, you may choose to get tested for your own peace of mind. This situation alone though does not warrant testing.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions.
Stephanie,
Helpline Volunteer
Monday-Friday 9am-4pm PDT
604.696.4666
helpline@aidsvancouver.org
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Comments
HIV virus
As per the above reply no i m not sexually active i m still virgin never had sex with any girl & yes blade was new but minor cut was from razor like only dot.
HIV virus
Plz reply.!!!
No Risk!
Hi Muhammad,
Your experience at the barber shop is still considered no risk for HIV. Additionally, you mentioned that the blade was new, so this means that acquiring Hepatitis C (if there was dried blood on the used blade) is also no risk.
If you are not sexually active, then I do not recommend STI testing at this time.
Take Care,
Elyse
Helpline Volunteer
How long have HIV virus live outside the body?
How long drop of blood should be exposed to the air at a surface to neutralize? That the drop of blood is not infectious?
Thanks very much
HIV outside the body
Hi there & thank-you for your question. Unfortunately I do not have a specific answer for you but I will do my best to explain why that is.
In order to determine how long a drop of blood show be exposed to the air so that the blood is not infectious anymore will depend on a number of factors including:
For some of the reasons I have listed above, there is no exact number or time that it takes for the HIV+ blood outside the body to be no longer infectious. Depending on very many different factors in every/any given situation, it could be seconds to minutes for the blood drop to neutralize.
I hope this answers your questions. If you are looking for more specific and exact science around this, I would encourage you to contact a local infectious disease specialist in order to have your question more fully addressed.
All the best,
Monica
AIDS Vancouver Helpline
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