The CDC has reported of the first case of a female-to-female HIV transmission.
The female-to-female HIV transmission occurred between two women who were in a relationship for six months. One of the women was HIV positive at the start of the relationship and the other was HIV negative. The women who was HIV negative hadn’t had intercourse with a man for a decade and also didn’t partake in any behaviors with a risk of transferring the disease, reports The Los Angeles Times.
Unprotected contact with vaginal fluids and menstrual bloods can result in a transfer of HIV. Researchers have previously thought that female-to-female HIV transmissions are possible, but this is the first solid case. Both of the women were tested for HIV and CDC researchers noted that the strain of the disease in the two women were nearly identical, reports the Huffington Post.
The couple says they often had unprotected sex, shared sex toys, had sex when one of them was menstruating and that sometimes their sex caused them to bleed. A female-to-female HIV transmission may be a rare occurrence, but the CDC still warns that even female couples with a person that has HIV still need to practice safe sex,
The L.A. Times notes.
