Most people get HIV through anal or vaginal sex, or sharing needles, syringes, or other drug injection equipment. Only certain body fluids can transmit HIV. These fluids must come into contact with a mucous membrane or damaged tissue or be directly injected into the bloodstream for transmission to occur. You can pass HIV to your baby during pregnancy, childbirth, and nursing (breastfeeding).

Only five bodily fluids contain enough HIV to transmit the virus: blood, semen (including pre-cum), rectal fluid, vaginal fluid and breast milk. HIV can only be transmitted when virus in one of these fluids gets into the bloodstream of an HIV-negative person, either through broken skin or by passing through the mucous membranes.

You can only get HIV by coming into direct contact with certain body fluids from a person with HIV who has a detectable viral load. These fluids are: blood; semen (cum) and pre-seminal fluid (pre-cum); rectal fluids; vaginal fluids; breast milk.[4] For transmission to occur, the HIV in these fluids must get into the bloodstream of an HIV-negative person through a mucous membrane (found in the rectum, vagina, mouth, or tip of the penis), through open cuts or sores, or by direct injection (from a needle or syringe).[4]

HIV spreads through specific body fluids—blood, semen, vaginal fluids, rectal fluids, and breast milk—most commonly through unprotected sex, shared needles, or perinatal transmission.[5] Once someone has HIV, the virus remains in the body and can be transmitted to others through these fluids: Blood; Semen (including preseminal fluid); Vaginal fluids; Rectal fluids; Breastmilk.[5] HIV cannot spread through casual contact (such as hugging), surfaces in the environment, saliva, sweat, tears, or insect bites.[5]

HIV has been isolated from blood, semen, vaginal secretions, saliva, tears, breast milk, cerebrospinal fluid, amniotic fluid, and urine and is likely to be isolated from other body fluids, secretions, and excretions. However, epidemiologic evidence has implicated only blood, semen, vaginal secretions, and possibly breast milk in transmission.

HIV is spread by sexual contact with an infected person, by sharing needles and/or syringes with someone who is infected, or, less commonly, through transfusions of infected blood or blood clotting factors. Babies born to HIV-infected women may become infected before or during birth or through breast-feeding after birth. Contact with saliva, tears, or sweat has never been shown to result in transmission of HIV.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the virus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), is transmitted through sexual contact and exposure to infected blood or blood components and perinatally from mother to neonate.[7] HIV has been isolated from blood, semen, vaginal secretions, saliva, tears, breast milk, cerebrospinal fluid, amniotic fluid, and urine and is likely to be isolated from other body fluids, secretions, and excretions. However, epidemiologic evidence has implicated only blood, semen, vaginal secretions, and possibly breast milk in transmission.[7]

The findings of this investigation underscore the multiple routes by which exposure to infectious body fluids can occur among sexually intimate persons. Persons choosing to have sex with HIV-infected persons or persons with unknown HIV serostatus should correctly use latex condoms during each act of intercourse and should avoid any other exposure to potentially infectious body fluids, including blood, semen, or any other body fluid visibly contaminated with blood.

Universal precautions do not apply to feces, nasal secretions, sputum, sweat, tears, urine, and vomitus unless they contain visible blood. The risk of transmission from these fluids is not considered significant for HIV.

Only certain body fluids from a person who has HIV can transmit HIV. These fluids include blood; semen (cum); pre-seminal fluid (pre-cum); rectal fluids; vaginal fluids; breast milk.[1] These fluids must come in contact with a mucous membrane or damaged tissue or be directly injected into the bloodstream (from a needle or syringe) for transmission to occur.[1] HIV is not transmitted by: mosquitoes, ticks, or other insects; saliva, tears, or sweat; hugging, shaking hands, sharing toilets, sharing dishes, or closed-mouth or social kissing with someone who has HIV.[1]

Since the beginning of the AIDS pandemic, and following the discovery of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as the etiological agent of the disease, it was clear that the virus gains access to the human host predominantly through the mucosal tissue after sexual exposure.[6] HIV gains entry into the body mainly during sexual intercourse by crossing epithelial barriers covering the mucosal surfaces of the female and male (penis) genital tracts as well as the anal/rectal epithelia.[6] All genital fluids that transmit HIV such as seminal plasma and cervicovaginal secretions also carry HIV-infected cells.[6]

HIV-1 is present in many secretions including oral, intestinal, genital, and breast milk. However, most people exposed to HIV-1 within these mucosal compartments do not become infected despite often frequent and repetitive exposure over prolonged periods of time. All mucosal fluids including oral, intestinal, genital, and breast milk contain both cell-free and cell-associated virus, though the contribution of each type to transmission remains controversial. The most common mode of HIV-1 infection is through sexual transmission and semen is the most common vector of HIV-1 delivery into the anogenital mucosal compartments.

Assume that all body fluids are potentially infectious. Use gloves, goggles, and other barriers when coming in contact with blood or body fluids. Occupational HIV transmission is extremely rare. Only 58 cases of confirmed occupational HIV transmission to health care personnel have been reported in the United States.

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) can only be transmitted through specific body fluids, and only under certain conditions.[2] Only five body fluids can transmit HIV: 1. Blood 2. Semen (including pre-seminal fluid) 3. Rectal fluids 4. Vaginal fluids 5. Breast milk.[2] Transmission could occur if semen, pre-seminal fluid, vaginal fluids, rectal fluids, or blood from a person with HIV enter the mouth and come into contact with mucous membranes or damaged tissue, allowing the virus to enter the bloodstream.[2]

If someone with HIV has a detectable viral load, they can pass on HIV through the following body fluids: blood; semen (including pre-cum); vaginal fluid; anal (rectal) fluid; breast milk.[8] HIV cannot be passed on by: sweat; saliva; urine; faeces; vomit.[8]

Many studies reported that HIV was mainly transmitted through parenteral exposure, sexual activity, and body secretions, such as saliva and semen.[3] Studies showed that various body fluids, such as genital secretions, semen, feces and saliva, may be HIV RNA positive in HIV-positive patients.[3] The findings obtained in this study suggest that sweat from an HIV-infected individual that is not contaminated with blood or other body fluids has no potential for transmitting HIV infection even if serum HIV RNA level of the patient is considerably high.[3]

Only some body fluids have the potential to be infectious. In someone not taking HIV treatment (ART), these include: sexual fluids (semen and vaginal fluid); mucus from the vagina and anus; blood; drinking breastmilk is infectious to a baby but not to an adult. Saliva, spit, urine and faeces are not infectious for HIV. HIV positive people taking effective ART are not sexually infectious (U=U).

In contrast, unless blood is visibly present, saliva, sputum, sweat, tears, feces, nasal secretions, urine, and vomitus carry a very low risk for transmission of HIV and other bloodborne pathogens.[9] Higher-risk fluids for HIV transmission include blood, semen, vaginal secretions, and certain other fluids when they contain visible blood.[9]

The most common body fluids considered potentially infectious for HIV are blood, semen, vaginal secretions, and breast milk. Transmission occurs primarily through infected blood, semen, vaginal secretions, or breast milk. Sweat, tears, saliva, urine, and feces are not capable of transmitting HIV unless visibly contaminated with blood.

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is transmitted through blood and body fluids and gradually breaks down the immune system usually over a three-to-15-year period leading to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or AIDS.

HIV is spread by direct contact with certain body fluids from a person with HIV, like blood or semen.[4] In the United States, the most common ways are: having vaginal or anal sex with someone who has HIV without using a condom or taking medicines to prevent or treat HIV; sharing injection drug equipment such as needles or syringes with someone who has HIV because these items may have blood in them.[4]

HIV is spread from person to person through body fluids (blood, breastmilk, vaginal fluids, semen, and pre-cum).