The colleagues are a homosexual HIV positive couple.

At night, we all sat around the campfire talking and smoking Hookah. I completely forgot about the HIV status of the pair, and we were using the same Hookah. My wife is asthmatic so did not partake.

I see Dr EH has answered a question tonight about a similar scenario - saying that sharing Hookah’s is no risk for HIV. My concern is that it was dark with zero lighting bar the campfire, therefore I could not see the tube well to determine if it had traces of blood on it. 

My lips were chapped having just left the cold of the UK and I had a mouth ulcer from 2 nights before haven eaten hot food.

Q1) Do I need testing for HIV?

Q2) Can I resume sex with my wife?

Q3) On one evening the camp site was covered with sandflies. I heavily scratched my head and nostril where I was bitten, which caused small pimple-like bleeds. 

I am worried that I had been touching shared items with everyone in camp and again, due to poor lighting, could not see if there were any traces of blood on my fingers. 

Is this also no risk for HIV?

Any reassurance you can give is greatly appreciated.

Nobody in the world has ever acquired HIV from such superficial, casual contact -- including shared smoking implements. Chapped lips make no difference and neither does an oral ulcer, whether from hot food, a canker sore, or anything else. HIV is far harder to transmit than you are worried about; indeed, that's the very reason that infection only occurs by intimate sexual contact, shared needles, etc. As another way to describe the low risk, the household contacts of HIV infected persons never become infected even after years of sharing toilets, kitchens, eating utensils, towels, shared clothing, etc (of course not counting those household member who also are the infected persons' sex or needle-sharing partners).

Q1) No, you do not need HIV testing.

Q2) There is no reason not to continue unprotected sex with your wife.

Q3) These factors also do not create or elevate the risk of HIV.

Q4) [Not numbered] Same response if there were "traces of blood" on your hands or anywhere else on your body. You could have dipped your hands in a pint of blood from your HIV infected friends without being infected. 

I hope these comments provide the reassurance you need. Please don't worry!

Let me know if anything isn't clear.

HHH, MD

Apologies, my fault with how I drafted my original post. My Q3 concern was the fact I scratched the bites to the point of small bleeding on my head and in my nostril; and I was conscious of potentially infected fluids being on my fingers when this happened.

Does your 4. NOT NUMBERED response relate to this?

I imagine this would fall under ‘casual contact’ which you say is no risk, and I have read other replies on the forum where you and Dr Hook both say the virus is not transmitted via a person’s hands. 

So as I understand correctly:

I understood the scratching business. It doesn't change my reply or advice":  zero risk of HIV.

Q4 [not numbered] refers to the question you asked after Q3.

You statements of understanding and your closing statement are correct.