Rare Female to Female HIV Transmission Confirmed; Author Tells Her Story

New York City- The medical journal Clinical Infectious Diseases last month published details of a case of the HIV virus being transmitted between two women through sexual contact. According to the Department of Medicine at Mercy Hospital of Philadelphia where the case appeared:

"We describe a case of female-to-female transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). A 20-year-old African American woman with no obvious risk factors received a diagnosis of HIV infection, and the genotype of the infecting strain closely matched that of the strain infecting her openly bisexual female partner. The route of transmission was probably use of sex toys, used vigorously enough to cause exchange of blood-tinged body fluids. This is the first reported case of female-to-female sexual transmission of HIV supported by identification of similar HIV genotypes in the source patient and the recipient."

Female-to-female transmission of the virus has until this point eluded conclusive evidence through clinical studies, and is considered a rare occurrence. But Merle Soden has known for over ten years that unprotected female-to-female sexual contact can be deadly. Known as "Conscious" Soden penned her memoir GETTING UNSTUCK: Girl to Girl you Can be Infected…Indeed (SWN Publishing, 2002), which chronicles her tragic journey from childhood incest victim to adult living with HIV.

    "I tested negative before being in a monogamous relationship with a woman for two years, then was diagnoses as HIV positive," says the Harlem native. "African American women are falling prey to this disease at an alarming rate, so it's important for me to educate the community about all the risks, which include female-to-female transmission."

    Conscious is an in-demand speaker across the country, schooling college communities and organizations about the HIV education. In 2002 she was honored with the Autobiography of the Year award by Urban Spectrum newspaper in Denver for her emotional, raw memoir GETTING UNSTUCK. Told through a series of conversations between Conscious and her therapist at a drug rehabilitation facility, GETTING UNSTUCK delivers a powerful story of hope and triumph, while uncovering life or death information that medical research and AIDS education have failed to do.

    "This is not a point of contention or moral debate," says Conscious. "There are women who identify as lesbians, then there are heterosexual women who engage in sex with a man and another woman. Each person in that situation is at risk. Perhaps now after this female-to-female case we can begin to talk openly about all the risk factors."

Conscious is the former Music Director of the Queen Latifah Show, the host of the Oxygen Network talk show She-Commerce, a bodyguard for celebrities including Mark Wahlberg, Jay-Z and Missy Elliot, a United States Navy Electronic Technician, and a Division I college basketball standout. The film rights to GETTING UNSTUCK are currently in negotiations for option by a major film studio.
# # #




This article courtesy of http://femalebodybuildersinfo.com.
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in
your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author
name and URL remain intact. Links must remain active.

Submit Your Article