What Are The Chances Of HIV Through Sharing Shave Lotion?

Posted on Wed, 16 Jul 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 16 Jul 2014 Answered on

Tue, 5 Aug 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : Sir, my age is 33 and I am a male. Today while I was cutting my hair in a saloon, some after shave lotion fell into my eyes from the hand of the barber. If that after shave lotion is mixed with the blood of the person which was being shaved before about 5 mins(because the hand of the barber may used that lotion on the face of that person). My fear is that may I get HIV in this way if the previous man is HIV infected ???(I don't know whether he is HIV infected or not). Is it possible that HIV can live in after shave lotion for 5 mins ??? I am very scared sir. Please help me.

Answered by Dr. Sankaranantham Murugan (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
No possibility of HIV transmission in this way.

Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Welcome to HCM.
Thanks for posting your query.

Your fear for HIV is baseless. Nobody can get HIV in this way.
First of all, HIV is a highly fragile virus. It can not survive outside the body or body fluid not even for few seconds. Once the blood gets dried it will no longer exist outside the body. Moreover after shave lotion is used to prevent infections and to kill germs. How can HIV survive in the presence of after shave lotion or along with after shave lotion which basically contains alcohol which has a power to kill virus also. Moreover spilling of after shave lotion in the eyes can not be possible in considerable quantity. In which blood cannot get mixed as the specific gravity of blood is far more than the after shave lotion. This lotion would sterilize the hands of the barber if there is any infectious organisms.
So there is no possibility of HIV transmission in this way even if either the previous customer had HIV or the barber had HIV.
Dr S.Murugan

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar