En Español No. HIV is not transmitted by day-to-day contact in the workplace, schools, or
social settings. HIV is not transmitted through shaking hands, hugging, or
a casual kiss. You cannot become infected from a toilet seat, a drinking fountain,
a door knob, dishes, drinking glasses, food, or pets.
HIV is not an airborne
or food-borne virus, and it does not live long outside the body. HIV can
be found in the blood, semen, or vaginal fluid of an infected
person. The three main ways HIV is transmitted are
- through having
sex (anal, vaginal, or oral) with someone infected with HIV.
- through
sharing needles and syringes with someone who has HIV.
- through exposure
(in the case of infants) to HIV before or during birth, or through breast
feeding.
For more information about
HIV transmission, see "HIV
and Its Transmission."
Although contact with blood
and other body substances can occur in households, transmission of HIV is
rare
in this setting.
A small number of transmission
cases have been reported in which a person became infected with HIV as
a result of
contact with blood or other body secretions from an HIV-infected person
in the household. For information on these cases refer to the May 20,
1994 Morbidity
and Mortality Weekly Report, “Human Immunodeficiency Virus Transmission
in Household Settings — United States.”
Persons living with HIV and persons providing home care for those
living with HIV should be fully educated and trained regarding appropriate
infection-control
procedures.
You may view and/or
download "Caring for Someone with
AIDS at Home."
For more information
on about providing home care or living with a person who is HIV-infected,
visit the CDC National Prevention Information
Network
(NPIN)
Web site, or
call NPIN at 1-800-458-5231. |