HIV Transmission FAQs What are the main routes of HIV transmission?
• Unprotected penetrative sex with someone who is infected. • Injection or transfusion of contaminated blood or blood products, donations of semen (artificial insemination), skin grafts or organ transplants taken from someone who is infected. • From a mother who is infected to her baby; this can occur during pregnancy, at birth and through breastfeeding. • Sharing unsterilised injection equipment that has previously been used by someone who is infected. Can I be infected if my partner doesn’t have HIV? No. Like all sexually transmitted infections, HIV cannot be created, only passed on. If you are sure that your partner does not have HIV, then there is no risk of contracting it even if you do have unprotected sex (whether it be vaginal, anal or oral). However, pregnancy and other sexually transmitted diseases remain a risk, so you should still use a condom or other suitable form of birth control wherever possible. How safe is oral sex? Although it is possible to become infected with HIV
