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Can HIV Be Contracted Through A Needle Prick While Giving Injection?
Question: Hello!
For the past 8 months I've been worried I have HIV. I am a healthcare professional and in January I gave a lovenox injection to a patient. The patient was skinny and I felt the injection disburse under the patients skin. I do not ever recall feeling a needle prick nor do I recall having the needle touch my skin but I remember thinking that it was strange how I felt the medication disperse under the pts skin. About three weeks after I gave the injection I got sick. It was just a little cold and mostly my nose was stuffy but no fever or body aches or anything like that. When I got the cold I immediately thought about the injection I gave to the HIV patient and then started googling signs and symptoms. And about four months after I got a sore in my mouth but it could have been from eating sour gummy worms. (Side note, had this patient not had HIV I probably wouldn't even be questioning this.)
I have always been anxious about HIV. One time I convinced myself I got HIV because I tasted a mixed drink from someone with HIV.
What do you think?
For the past 8 months I've been worried I have HIV. I am a healthcare professional and in January I gave a lovenox injection to a patient. The patient was skinny and I felt the injection disburse under the patients skin. I do not ever recall feeling a needle prick nor do I recall having the needle touch my skin but I remember thinking that it was strange how I felt the medication disperse under the pts skin. About three weeks after I gave the injection I got sick. It was just a little cold and mostly my nose was stuffy but no fever or body aches or anything like that. When I got the cold I immediately thought about the injection I gave to the HIV patient and then started googling signs and symptoms. And about four months after I got a sore in my mouth but it could have been from eating sour gummy worms. (Side note, had this patient not had HIV I probably wouldn't even be questioning this.)
I have always been anxious about HIV. One time I convinced myself I got HIV because I tasted a mixed drink from someone with HIV.
What do you think?
Brief Answer:
Possibility of HIV is unlikely in the absence of a needle prick.
Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Welcome to HCM.
Thanks for posting your query.
You are sure that there was no needle prick injury while you gave the injection. Then why should you worry? There are hundreds of health care personnel are taking care of HIV positive people throughout the world including myself. (myself engaging with HIV+ve people for more than 25 years, including HIV +ve children). Nobody got HIV without a needle prick. There are people escaped from HIV even after a needle prick while caring them.
Your symptoms were common for every one. Especially the symptoms occurred 4 months after that incident is not at all possible due to HIV, as the initial acute infection is self limiting and the the individual will remain symptom less for years together till 7-10 years in the presence of an infection.
If you have a disturbed mind, take up a HIV test and rule out HIV and get relaxed.
Dr S.Murugan
Possibility of HIV is unlikely in the absence of a needle prick.
Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Welcome to HCM.
Thanks for posting your query.
You are sure that there was no needle prick injury while you gave the injection. Then why should you worry? There are hundreds of health care personnel are taking care of HIV positive people throughout the world including myself. (myself engaging with HIV+ve people for more than 25 years, including HIV +ve children). Nobody got HIV without a needle prick. There are people escaped from HIV even after a needle prick while caring them.
Your symptoms were common for every one. Especially the symptoms occurred 4 months after that incident is not at all possible due to HIV, as the initial acute infection is self limiting and the the individual will remain symptom less for years together till 7-10 years in the presence of an infection.
If you have a disturbed mind, take up a HIV test and rule out HIV and get relaxed.
Dr S.Murugan
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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