I have recently suffered with anxiety
Hi there I have recently suffered with bit of a anxiety regarding some previous exposures all of which were protected vaginal sex , the last of which being august , I tested at a little 3 months with a NHS 4th gen test , found to be negative , and since then I have done 2 x bio sure tests at 4 months & again just recently at 6 months both negative as well , I have been that is conclusive , but again with anxiety it works in strange ways and targets elsewhere , I was wondering if you could shed some light for me , this may sound strange although I have read online that fluids don’t really pose a risk outside of the body for very long , if at all , I have also read that vaginal fluid is less infectious , I’m unsure if did but my question is if was too have gotten a small amount of vaginal fluid onto a item of clothing and then went home and put them into the wash would they pose a risk too some one at home maybe doing the washing ,
would the fluid have dried out and not posed a risk , presumably the fluid would have dried out pretty quickly anyway but still unsure , thanks
Becky, BioSure UK Ltd
Work on 23rd February 2021
Hi Very Anxious 1,
I completely understand your worry but as I mentioned above, HIV does not typically survive for very long outside of the body as it cannot replicate. Any risk of exposure is greatly minimised due to the fact that the virus cannot be easily transmitted on surfaces or clothing etc. I hope this helps, Becky.
Very anxious 1
Used on 23rd February 2021
Thank you Becky I am unsure of my parters status as they were sex workers the only reason I am worried is because Once or twice I had intercourse with a t - shirt on I mean I am not completely sure if I had got fluid on a t shirt or item of clothing , but I mean if I did , by the time I had got home surely the fluid would not be infectious or indeed would have dried out , I am not worried as much as my tests have come back negative but my anxiety has led me to worry about this ?
Becky, BioSure UK Ltd
Work on 23rd February 2021
Hi Very Anxious 1,
HIV does not survive for long outside of the body. There is a very low risk that HIV could have been transmitted on an item of clothing. Firstly, the vaginal fluid would have to contain HIV (are you aware of your sexual partner's status?) and secondly, it is not enough to simply be in contact with an infected fluid for HIV to be transmitted. HIV can only enter through an open cut or sore, or through contact with mucous membranes. This means that you or someone else would have had to directly come in contact with the infected fluid and it would have had to enter into the bloodstream. Given that this incident is an extremely low risk exposure and the fact that you had protected sex suggests to me that your overall exposure was very low risk. It is great that you have taken the initiative to test but I would try to move on and put this behind you, given that your risk is extremely low. Kindest regards, Becky
