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Question from Denver CO

Today while cleaning home got paper cut which bled (4-5 drops) when I squeezed it. I went out immediately to pick up mail that was delivered. What if my bleeding papercut touched physical mail that might have blood? Please let me know HIV risk. Thank you
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Avatar universal
Your situation involves personal contact with an object in air  ( blood, etc.). No hiv worries, because you can't get hiv from personal contact except unprotected penetrating vaginal or anal, neither of which you did and you didn't share hollow needles to inject with which is the only other way to acquire hiv. Analysis of large numbers of infected people over the 40 years of hiv history has proven that people don't get hiv in the way you are worried is a risk.
HIV is a fragile virus in air or saliva and is effectively instantly dead in either air or saliva so the worst that could happen is dead virus rubbed you, and obviously anything which is dead cannot live again so you are good. Blood and cuts would not be relevant in your situation since the hiv has become effectively dead, so you don't have to worry about them to be sure that you are safe.
There is no reason for a person to test when they are safe. The advice took into consideration that the other person might be positive, so move on and enjoy life instead of thinking about this non-event. Next time you wonder if you had a risk, ask yourself this question. Did I do any of the 3? Then after you say "No, I didn't" then it's time to move on back to your happy life.
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Thank you for detailed response and god bless you and your team of volunteers
3191940 tn?1447268717
COMMUNITY LEADER
There is no need to keep asking for answers - the questions are responded to by volunteers, who help when they have time available.

Risks for HIV in adults are:
1) Having unprotected anal or vaginal sex, or
2) sharing intravenous needles.

There is no other activity that you can think of, including the event you mentioned, that would put you at risk for HIV
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Kudos to all volunteers, can you confirm if the assessment of no risk even if my papercut was actively bleeding while I opened the mail box and touched mail that may be tainted with hiv+ blood?
Avatar universal
Can someone pls respond.
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Am I at any risk experts?
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