Q: If an HIV positive patient drank water from a container and some quantity of his blood from the wounded lip blends into the water, then if I drink the remainder water, will I be infected? What if my gums were wounded too? Secondly, if an HIV positive person has many wounds on his body and he swims in the same pool where I am swimming, what if his blood blends in the water and I have a wound on my body too. Or his urine or seminal fluid blends in the water. Will I be infected or not?

A:The chances are very slim for HIV infection. It depends on how much water is remaining in the container which got contaminated with a tinge of blood from a wounded lip! I will be more bothered about other infections like Hepatitis B and C viruses, HSV 1 etc. Secondly, water in swimming pools heavily chlorinated. Most of the infectious agents get inactivated and destroyed by the chlorine content of the water. HIV is one of them. Please remember, HIV is a very sensitive virus. It gets destroyed very easily.