Expert: Terry B - 8/3/2006

Question
i was just wandering is it possible to get hiv if u have  cuts on your fingers ,i was at a party an hooked up with a 2  girls,but that day i had worked with wire  and ive gotten cut ,the cuts wernt deep at all, were i needed stiches. but i was just wandering wether it is possible to contract hiv from the girls if they had it,through fingering them thanks

Answer
Assessing your risk depends on a number of variables. Blood, semen, vaginal secretions, and breast milk in an infected person have concentrations of HIV sufficient to trasmit the virus.  Unbroken skin and mucous membranes are the first line of defense against infections; the amount of fluid to which you are exposed and the duration of the exposure are variables you should weigh.  

You describe a possible vaginal secretion to blood or blood (menstrual fluid) to blood transmission risk - a relatively high risk given what you have described IF the women in question are infected with HIV.  

Weigh this with awareness that while we advise that you know your partner's HIV status and assume they are positive if you don't know, thankfully most people are not infected.  Secondly, not every exposure to the fluids of an infected person leads to transmission of the virus to the person exposed.  I am not aware of studies isolating digital stimulation (fingering) from all other risk behaviors to help set a probability of transmission.

I would recommend that you be tested - for your own peace of mind and that of your partner(s).  In the future, be advised that intact latex can serve as a barrier to HIV transmission - in the case described, latex finger cots or gloves (or even putting your fingers into a latex condom) would reduce your risk.

Terry B