Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2004. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date. My ex husband has HIV and I found out this evening that our 16 year old daughter borrowed her father's razor to shave her legs. I immediately went into a panic. I asked her if she had nicked herself at all and she said she hadn't. She has recently found out that her Father is gay, but does not know that he is HIV. Should I get her tested immediately?!?
Lisa Capaldini, M.D.
Internal Medicine
The likelihood of HIV transmission to your daughter is EXTREMELY low, so low that I would not recommend that she be tested for HIV. But I would make sure that razors aren't shared in your household, as other viruses, including hepatitis B and hepatitis C are also potentially transmissible through sharing razors and even toothbrushes (assuming blood is transported from one person into other person's bloodstream). The good news, HIV-wise, is that HIV is NOT easy to transmit within a household setting. For example, holding hands, sharing a glass or a towel, are NOT dangerous. The main precaution is to avoid person-to-person exposure of blood, semen/vaginal fluids, and stool. Twenty years into the HIV epidemic it remains reassuring that only one case of household transmission has been documented: that involved a woman who aquired HIV from cleaning up diarrhea on a chronic basis without using gloves. So if you and your daughter take basic precautions, you should be fine.
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