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Is Transmission Of The HIV Virus Through A Mosquito Possible?
Question: Last night I saw a mosquito flying and squashed it before it could bite myself or my son. It hadn't bit either one of us. When I squashed it I realized it was engorged and full of blood. Ive never seen thst much blood from killing a modquito. It got all over my hand. I'm a little freaked out because I have no idea whose blood it is. Is there a chance that if the blood was infected that I could have gotten HIV? My hands are dry and crack but I haven't noticed any visible cuts. Thanks
Hi XXXXXXX,
Transmission of the HIV virus through a mosquito is not possible. This issue has been raised multiple times in the past, and there was a lot of hype in the media in the past regarding this possibility. Studies have been done and concluded that the virus cannot be transmitted by a mosquito bite, even if it is a mosquito that just bit an HIV infected person. Reasons include:
1. the mosquito saliva and stomach have enzymes that kill the virus almost immediately.
2. even if the mosquito would not kill the virus, the amount of virus that a mosquito can ingest is so small that they still could not infect you.
3. The mosquito feeding apparatus is not like a flying needle, and the dept of penetration into the skin is very small.
4. If you killed the mosquito and did not have any visible cuts on your skin then the chances of infection would be even lower.
5. The fact that the mosquito had fresh blood means that the insect probably bit you or your son (without you realizing it), or somebody in the immediate space around you, since the behavior of the mosquito is to bite once and then go away to digest their "meal".
6. the CDC (center for disease control) has stated based on all the studies that they cannot transmit the virus.
In summary I would not be concerned at all. You can test yourself just for general health maintenance and check up, but not because of this incident.
Hope that helps, have a good day.
Transmission of the HIV virus through a mosquito is not possible. This issue has been raised multiple times in the past, and there was a lot of hype in the media in the past regarding this possibility. Studies have been done and concluded that the virus cannot be transmitted by a mosquito bite, even if it is a mosquito that just bit an HIV infected person. Reasons include:
1. the mosquito saliva and stomach have enzymes that kill the virus almost immediately.
2. even if the mosquito would not kill the virus, the amount of virus that a mosquito can ingest is so small that they still could not infect you.
3. The mosquito feeding apparatus is not like a flying needle, and the dept of penetration into the skin is very small.
4. If you killed the mosquito and did not have any visible cuts on your skin then the chances of infection would be even lower.
5. The fact that the mosquito had fresh blood means that the insect probably bit you or your son (without you realizing it), or somebody in the immediate space around you, since the behavior of the mosquito is to bite once and then go away to digest their "meal".
6. the CDC (center for disease control) has stated based on all the studies that they cannot transmit the virus.
In summary I would not be concerned at all. You can test yourself just for general health maintenance and check up, but not because of this incident.
Hope that helps, have a good day.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Thanks so much for your help!
You are very welcome
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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