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STDs in the blood.

Jul 6, 1998

I know that diseases like HIV or Hepatitis B can be spread by an infected person's blood getting into an uninfected person's bloodstream. Possible ways this could happen would be a needlestick accident or an infected person bleeding into an open sore or cut of an uninfected person. What I was wondering is if other stds like syphilis( and would this be only in the primary stage of infection?), Gonorrhea, Chancroid, Chlamydia or any other stds can also be spread this way. Another way of asking the question is if these or any other stds are contained in blood. And if they are contained in blood how long do they survive outside the body? Thanks

Response from Mr. Sowadsky

Thank you for your question. The following STDs can be found in blood. Those with an asterisk (*) after them are screened in the US blood supply.


Hepatitis A (very low risk of transmission through blood, but technically possible. This virus is only occasionally sexually transmitted, primarily through oral-anal sex)

Hepatitis B*

Hepatitis C* (this virus is only occasionally sexually transmitted, but it is commonly transmitted by exposure to blood)

Syphilis* (not normally transmitted through blood, but it is technically possible, especially in the early stages of the disease)



Gonorrhea (If left untreated, this infection can get into the bloodstream causing serious complications, illness and even death. However, the use of antibiotics has now made this a very rare complication in developed countries. This infection is not normally transmitted through the blood)

Realistically speaking, the STDs that would normally pose a significant chance of infection through blood are HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, HTLV-I, and HTLV-II. Infections like HIV and the HTLV viruses die rapidly outside the body (within minutes). However, the Hepatitis B virus can survive for hours (even days) outside the body. The Hepatitis C virus can survive longer than HIV outside the body, but shorter than Hepatitis B.


Pinta, yaws, and endemic syphilis
chlamydia transmission

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