[Question #4302] Risk from possible blood exposure

83 months ago

Hi Doctors,

I am a 24 year old female. I had an incident at the hair salon today. Someone got cut with the scissors and my hairstylist went to help him out. He then immediately got back to me and directly started massaging my scalp, neck and face without washing his hands. I am not sure if my hairstylist came in contact with that persons blood. Due to the hair spa treatment i got done, i am not supposed to wash my hair for the next 3 days, so even when i got home i couldn't wash my hair.

I am now scared of the risk this carries for me to acquire serious infections like HIV and Hepatitis.

Please advice this situation. What is the risk for these infections? What should be my next move with regards to getting tested and when?

Thank You.

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

83 months ago

Welcome to the forum. Thanks for your question.

Nobody has ever caught HIV, and probably no other blood borne infections, from an event like this. You won't be the first. Even if the cut person had one of these infections, and even if there was fresh blood on the hands of the hair stylist, there would be no risk of transmission. By the same token, nobody has ever been infected in a medical care setting because a nurse or doctor had infected blood on her hands and then contacted a patient. Among other things, the virus probably would not survive the exposure to air. In addition, contact of infected blood with intact skin is never risky. Even if you had some sort of inflammation or sores on your scalp, not enough blood could be introduced to cause infection.

So no worries at all. You do not need testing for anything.

I hope this information is helpful. Let me know if anything isn't clear.

HHH, MD

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83 months ago

Thank you Dr. for your response. I really freaked out looking at the gushing blood and got grossed out since he came and got back to my hair and face massage unexpectedly. I do understand your response, just had this query, is there any chance of infection if it has entered my ear canal?? since I'm not sure where all it could have gone.

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

83 months ago

The lining of the ear canals is skin; unlike mouth, nose, etc, it's not mucous membrane, which is more susceptible to infection. Getting infected blood in the ear would be no more risky than exposure of intact skin anywhere on the body.

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82 months ago

Thank you doctor, that helps.

One more thing I would like you to know is the time interval between touching the injured and then my hair and face, was less than 20 sec. Is that much time sufficient to make the viruses non infectious when exposed to air?

Also, at how many weeks of testing is it conclusive of excluding 100% chance of infections?

H. Hunter Handsfield, MD

82 months ago

20 seconds is too soon for HIV to be rendered inactive by exposure to air or by drying. But it really doesn't matter. The important fact is that there are no reported cases of HIV being transmitted from blood contact in the environment. In theory it could happen, but it would probably require the exposed person to be injured, with an open, bleeding wound, which would have to be exposed to an infected person's blood. There are simply no reported or otherwise known cases acquired by exposure of intact skin to blood. While I am less familiar with environmental risks for other blood borne viruses, such as HBV and HCV, I believe it's the same, i.e. few or no known cases. Given the absence of such cases, the biological reasons for the low risk aren't important. If it doesn't happen, why worry about the reasons?

All these viruses can have conclusive testing at 6 weeks. I continue to believe it is pointless for you to have such tests (unless, of course, you are at possible risk through sexual or needle-sharing exposures). But feel free to do it if you feel you must. I also strongly recommend that you continue your normal sexual practices, if you are in a committed sexual relationship, without waiting until being tested.

That concludes the two follow-up questions and replies included with each original question and so ends this thread. I hope the discussion has been helpful.

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