My friend is wondering the likelihood of transmission through an odd instance. They were at a party and the person making drinks had a large bowl of some kind of alchoholic punch. He dipped a cup into the punch and handed it to my friend, who drank it. The odd part, however, was that he had a good-sized cut on his hand, though, so she is now worried that IF (and we are not sure if this waiter is even HIV psoitive) it would be possible to transmit the HIV virus through this situation (from his hand into the punch, and into my friends' drink and then into her mouth( body). Or would it die immediately once the virus left the body and went into the punch? If you could answer my question, it would make things a lot easier for me. Thank you for you time and attention.

Hello,

This is indeed an odd instance! No, not the question about getting HIV by ingesting food served by a waiter with a cut, but rather because you were at a party where they were serving punch! Was it a retro party? Were people doing the Hokey Pokey and playing Twister?

As for the wounded waiter and your tasty punch beverage, the HIV risk is nonexistent. Now go back to your party and have some nice Ritz crackers with Cheez Whiz and some of those cute "pigs in a blanket" fancy hors d'oeuvres, OK?

Dr. Bob