Dear Counsellor:
I'm presently practising safer sex. However there are times when I may come in contact with saliva, tears and sweat of another person. Tell me, is it possible to get HIV from those body fluids?
Jean
Dear Jean:
HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, has been found in the salvia and tears in very low quantities of some persons living with AIDS. However, it is important for you to understand that finding a small amount of HIV in a body fluid does not necessarily mean that HIV can be transmitted by that body fluid. HIV has not been found in the sweat of HIV infected persons. Therefore we can safely say that contact with salvia, tears, or sweat has never been shown to result in the transmission of HIV.
Sores on my penis
Dear Counsellor:
I had unprotected sex four days ago and now I notice a sore on my penis. Do you think I have a disease?
Dawn
Dear Dawn:
Yes, you may be infected with a sexually transmitted infection (STI) because a sore or ulcer is usually present on the sex organs when a person is infected with a sexually transmitted infection. This sore may be painful; you may have swollen lymph glands ('wax and kernel') occurring in the groin. Glands maybe tender or painful and may go on to become an abscess which may burst and discharge thick smelly pus. With some STIs there may be 'flu-like' aches and pains. If the sore you are experiencing is a STI and it is not treated early and properly, the sore can cause deformities or permanent changes in the shape of the penis, vagina and scrotum. Therefore it is important for you to see a doctor as soon as possible so that you can be properly diagnosed and treated.
Getting AIDS/HIV from hugging and kissing
Dear Counsellor:
My little niece is HIV positive. She likes to hug and kiss and we really don't want to avoid her especially when we hug and kiss other kids living in the house. Is it all right to kiss her?
Worried Aunt
Dear Worried Aunt:
Hugging and kissing your niece is not a risk for HIV infection. To date, there has been no reported case of anyone contracting HIV the virus that causes AIDS from casual contact. Remember that you would only be at risk for HIV infection if the activities you perform involve an exchange of blood, or sexual fluids. An infected mother can also infect her child through breast milk or during birth.
Your niece deserves to be treated with the same kind of love and care you would give to any other child.
I think I may be infected
Dear Counsellor:
I think I may be infected with gonorrhoea because I have been having a burning pain from my penis and a pus discharge. I am so ashamed to go to the doctor. Is there any thing you could recommend that I buy over the counter?
Ray
Dear Ray:
No there is absolutely nothing that I could recommend you to buy over the counter to treat the symptoms that you are presenting. You need to see a doctor as soon as possible, so that you can be assessed and properly treated. If you are infected with a sexually transmitted infection and you are not properly treated, you could develop serious complications that could stay with you forever. Remember that if you use a condom every time you have sex, this will reduce your chances of becoming infected with sexually transmitted infections including HIV the virus that causes AIDS.
Do
you have a problem? Is something bothering
you? Write to