Question
I am taking PEP, can I have uprotected sex?
14 February 2012. Related: All topics, PEP/PEPSE.
I’ve been taking lamzid for 5 days now and I want to find out how this will
affect my pregnant partner when we have unprotected sex?
I am taking lamzid because I slept with someone without a condom and I felt
very unsafe so I went to the doctor within 72 hours and he prescribed lamzid for me.
My pregnant partner is only 7weeks pregnant will this harm our baby?
Answer
There is no data on whether PEP can harm the unborn baby. However, unprotected sex whilst you are taking PEP is not recommended. This is because you don’t know your status and you could infect your partner. That is why it is important to wait until you finish the course and have done the follow-up confirmatory test.
For more information on PEP and the risks of sexual transmission, please follow this link to our guide.
Best wishes
Hi Gerald,
Unfortunately, while you’re on PEP you don’t know your HIV status. But the aim of PEP is to keep you HIV negative of course. There could be some risk of transmission, but that might be low if you just have sex once without a condom.
It’s a good idea to talk to your partner and the doctor about any ongoing risk to her.
I have been on PEP for one week unfortunately had unprotected sex with my partner who is negative, is there possibility of transmitting the infection to her coz am worried about it or should she also start PEP ?
Hi Eric,
Here’s a link to all FAQs for HIV risk and HIV testing. Probably this is very low risk.
The last question did not give me the answer I was looking for. So. Here it is again. My partner recently tested positive for hiv. I’ve been on prep but I stopped when I left out of state for work. I went home that weekend to be with him and we had protected sex. The condom broke and I started PEP at about 30 hours after that. My question is since I’m on PEP and he’s started his meds, am I at risk for new exposure since truvada is part of this treatment cycle? I understand that after an exposure I wouldn’t want to have unprotected sex with other people since my status is still “unknown” until after therapy. but with him, we know his. AM I AT RISK FOR NEW EXPOSURE? WILL
I HAVE TO RESTART PEP?
Hi Eric,
Perhaps look at the timing of events. You can also ask for your partner’s viral load results now that he’s taking ART. Some people become undetectable on ART within a month but most people take about three months.
So if he’s only been on ART for a week he might not be undetectable yet.
My question is..I was on PrEP then stopped when I started traveling for work again. While away My partner tested positive for HIV. So he’s been positive since we’ve been together. I continue to test negative. I came home one weekend and we had PROTECTED sex. The first time having protected sex and the condom broke. I started PEP at around 30hrs after this exposure.. now to the question I need answered. Since I started PEP and he started meds a week ago, are we able to have unprotected sex since truvada is part of the post exposure, shouldn’t this, in essence protect me still? I mean, this all happened a month ago, and I’m kind of prepared for anything at this point. I don’t have multiple sex partners. Just him.
Hi Philip,
HIV can only be transmitted when a person is positive. Because you’re negative, your partner can’t possible be positive.
Hi Roy,
Thanks for your reply.
I had read that, following recent exposure, there may be a small amount of HIV in the bloodstream or the body’s cells, which the PEP drugs prevent from replicating, effectively ‘aborting’ the infection.
I was wondering whether, if the virus did indeed enter my body, this viremia could have been passed onto my female partner before the PEP eliminated it in my own body. Or does the fact that I ultimately tested negative mean that I was never at risk of passing on the virus?
I also have herpes so also wondered whether the HIV virus could have entered my herpes-infected cells and then been shed, potentially infecting my female partner, again, before being eliminated in my own body by the PEP. Or is that simply too remote a possibility?
Thanks,
Phillip
Hi Philip,
Unfortunately, I’m not sure what you mean about HIV being aborted. When PEP works, you remain HIV negative because PEP stops any infectious HIV cells from replicating.
I have a concern regarding a course of PEP I took several years ago after brief unprotected receptive anal sex with an unknown partner. At the end of the course, and several months afterwards, I tested negative for HIV which confirmed that either I was not infected or that the PEP worked. However I have since learned that during a course of PEP one can still show a positive viral load which is then ‘aborted’ by the drugs.
My concern comes from the fact that I also had unprotected sex during the course of my PEP with a female partner. I see now how irresponsible this was but at the time I was young and foolish and simply assumed that the PEP was very likely to work so there was minimal risk.
I now fear that given that HIV can still replicate in the bloodstream and plasma before it is aborted by PEP, there might have been a chance I could have transmitted the virus. How likely is this possibility and should I try to find and get in touch with my former partner to let her know?