[Question #14048] baby mouth and finger with blood

1 months ago

Dear doctor:

Please help me out, as I am a bit anxious about what happened to my baby last weekend.

We were at a gathering, and a woman took my baby on her lap to feed him. She was giving him mashed food directly with her fingers, and I noticed that my baby was repeatedly putting a her finger into his mouth with each bite.

After this had happened several times (10 times or so), I suddenly realized that the same finger she was using to feed him had a small cut on it. Around the cut, there appeared to be a small area of what looked like smeared blood. It did not seem to be actively oozing blood, but I don´t know as I saw this some time after the feeding process started.

This made me very worried about the possibility of HIV transmission, because I have read there have been some cases of hiv transmission to babies from caretakers who prechew their food with blood in their mouth and passed the illness to the baby. I am not sure if what happened to my baby resembles this scenario but in any case I wanted to make sure my baby is not at risk. Please let me know, especially because my baby's mouth came into direct contact with that finger multiple times while he was eating.

Edward W. Hook M.D.

1 months ago

Welcome back to our Forum. Thanks again for your continuing confidence in our service. While I understand how much a mother can worry about the health of their children, I think that once again you are worrying far more than you need to. The activities you describe would not put your baby at risk for infection.

How old is your baby?

I say that there is virtually no risk from the event you describe for several reasons:

1. First, it is most unlikely that the woman who was feeding your child has untreated HIV.

2. Second, infection of babies as a result of ingestion of breast milk or food which has been pre-chewed by an infected woman is very rare and when it occurs occurs only in newborn children who are unable to digest anything other than breast milk. In those cases, the newborn digestive tract can be a rare source of infection but the situations in which it has occurred involved multiple (many) exposures and occurred before the child could digest anything other than breast milk or something roughly equivalent to it.

3. The presence of a small cut on the woman's finger does not change this assessment.

I hope that this information is helpful to you. Please don't worry. There is no need for your child to be tested. EWH

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1 months ago

Thanks so much for your kind reply. Since my baby is 11 months old, I have nothing to worry about. Thanks so much as always !!! Best wishes!

Edward W. Hook M.D.

1 months ago

By age 11 your baby’s digestive tract has matured to the point at which even in the very unlikely circumstance that he ingested HIV, stomach acids would have killed the virus. Your son is at no risk. No need to worry. I encourage you to move forward without concern. EWH---

1 months ago

Thanks so much doctor, and just to wrap things up, and let my worries rest.... this would still be true - no risk scenario - if my baby was 6 months and a half, right? Because a similar thing happened to us at this age. --- Oh and also, if my baby at a younger age, say 2-3 months scratched someone and then put that scratched finger in his mouth, it would still be no risk , right? As a scratch produces very little blood, insufficient or very unlike the prechewed food scenarios right?

Sorry for adding more scenarios, but my head is just spiraling due to lack of sleep, but a very short answer from your part regarding no risk in the above mentioned scenarios will put all this to rest.

Thanks a lot from the bottom of my heart

1 months ago

And just to clarify our scenario at 6 months and a half - my baby was being held by an uncle and he accidentally kissed him on the lips once or twice, can´t remember, but the uncle had a lip injury. It was not evidently oozing blood but it was an injury that could have had some fresh blood. I believe it is similar to our current episode with the finger, so I imagine it is still a no risk scenario.

Edward W. Hook M.D.

1 months ago

Final responses:

Even at 6.5 months, I would have no fear of HIV from the events you describe. Same for the kissing or scratching you describe.

As I mentioned before, while I understand you intense desire to keep your baby safe, I think you are worrying far more than you need to.

This completes this thread which will now be closed. EWH

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