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Can I Get HIV From An Infected Dildo?
Question: My boyfriend online in another country had sent me a dildo this is so embarrassing anyway we been talking since last yr and Im in us. He bought me a dildo and it was in the box sealed but he took it out and touched him with it and got some of his semen on it. We both thought this would be like a intimate thing of something I guess of closeness. Anyway weeks passed by and he sent it to me I am not sure he touched himself with it after that or not. Anyway if he didnt touch himself since that day it been weeks or a a month or two before he sent it and did that. But if he did use it or touch him without me knowing it then when it sent it least in the mail it been around maybe 3-7 days when I got it .I used lysole on it and did wash it so I mean HIV wouldnt be on it and I should be alright right? I am not saying he has it but you never know about anyone online 100 percent and I just wanted to be sure. Im too embarrassed to go to my dr and tell him this sort of thing or ask I have a lot of anxiety sometimes about things so I just wanted to be sure thanks.
Hi,
Thanks for the query.
After going through your query, I understand that you are worried regarding getting HIV. So let share some important information on HIV and that should reassure you.
HIV is very fragile by nature and is also extremely sensitive to even small fluctuations in temperature and the presence of oxygen.
Outside strictly controlled laboratory conditions, HIV will only survive for a couple of minutes at the very most. Unlike most viruses, it has to be within a host or culture at a temperature of 98.6 degrees. Outside the body, the virus dies within minutes without the temperature necessary for its survival. The one place that HIV has been shown to survive for extended periods of time is in needles used with syringes. The needles frequently contain enough blood to prevent the HIV from drying out.
In all the twenty-five years that scientists have been studying HIV, there has not been a single known instance of HIV being transmitted through casual contact in the environment.
So do not worry. Even if your boy friend did have the infection, it is highly unlikely that you would get the infection.
Hope my answer has reassured you. Please accept my answer if you do not have any follow up queries.
A small word of advice before we close: “avoid sexual contact with unknown people without knowing their sexual history or illness” – The best method to prevent HIV transmission is to avoid sexual contact, not even protected one.
If you have any other concerns, I will be available to address them.
Regards
Thanks for the query.
After going through your query, I understand that you are worried regarding getting HIV. So let share some important information on HIV and that should reassure you.
HIV is very fragile by nature and is also extremely sensitive to even small fluctuations in temperature and the presence of oxygen.
Outside strictly controlled laboratory conditions, HIV will only survive for a couple of minutes at the very most. Unlike most viruses, it has to be within a host or culture at a temperature of 98.6 degrees. Outside the body, the virus dies within minutes without the temperature necessary for its survival. The one place that HIV has been shown to survive for extended periods of time is in needles used with syringes. The needles frequently contain enough blood to prevent the HIV from drying out.
In all the twenty-five years that scientists have been studying HIV, there has not been a single known instance of HIV being transmitted through casual contact in the environment.
So do not worry. Even if your boy friend did have the infection, it is highly unlikely that you would get the infection.
Hope my answer has reassured you. Please accept my answer if you do not have any follow up queries.
A small word of advice before we close: “avoid sexual contact with unknown people without knowing their sexual history or illness” – The best method to prevent HIV transmission is to avoid sexual contact, not even protected one.
If you have any other concerns, I will be available to address them.
Regards
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Prasad
Answered by
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