Can sharing razors spread HIV

There have been reports of infection caused by sharing razors in history, but it is controversial.

A pair of young brothers in the United States have been infected with HIV one after another. They all suffer from hemophilia (a hereditary disease that is difficult to stop bleeding due to coagulation dysfunction caused by lack of coagulation factors). In order to control the disease, factor VIII needs to be imported for a long time. A was found to be HIV positive in 1985, while B was tested positive in 1991 and negative before.

Researchers analyzed the virus sequences and found that the virus strains in the two bodies were highly similar, If blood transfusion products cause B infection, Then the viruses in the two bodies will be very different, so it is speculated that the virus in B is probably transmitted by A. Researchers found that a and B shared a razor for more than a year, and both said they had scratched their skin and bled, so sharing a razor is a possible transmission route.

However, other transmission possibilities cannot be ruled out in subsequent discussions, including: 1. The brothers may share injection equipment when giving themselves factor VIII; 2. There may have been unsafe sex between the brothers [1].

Three factors of HIV transmission are indispensable:

1. There is HIV in sufficient quantity: HIV is the only pathogen of AIDS, and it is impossible to infect AIDS without HIV. Although various body fluids such as saliva, urine and tears of infected persons can detect HIV virus, the content is extremely small, and the virus will lose its infectivity within a few minutes after leaving the human body, which does not constitute infection.

2. Effective transmission route: sufficient virus must be able to enter the human body before infection can be caused;

3. Susceptibility of infected subjects: Except for a few individuals who are inherently immune to HIV, almost everyone is susceptible to HIV.

It is not difficult to assess the possibility of [razor spreading AIDS] based on the above factors. If A and B share a razor, First of all, one of them must be infected with HIV. Another person has the premise of being infected. Assuming infected person A uses a razor, And bleeding, The blood containing the virus remained on the razor, The virus can survive for a period of time in environments such as bathrooms with high humidity (it is impossible for the killed blood to spread AIDS). B Use this razor immediately, Scratch your face (how much it takes to die) …), then there is a theoretical possibility of infection. As for the probability of infection, there is no relevant research, but I personally think it is far less than the 0.3% transmission risk of needle injuries by medical personnel. The same analysis also applies to toothbrushes, fruit knives and even kitchen knives…

In fact, medicine does not encourage sharing razors or toothbrushes and other personal belongings, not to consider HIV, more is to prevent and treat the spread of other viruses and bacterial diseases. In short, conditions permit or do not share razors, toothbrushes and other personal belongings is better. There is no need to panic about AIDS patients, and the risk of HIV transmission through some channels is very limited.