News & Media > BHIVA response to Avon and Somerset police announcement on issuing spit guards to operational officers
Wednesday 22 November 2017
Avon and Somerset police plans to issue spit guards to officers from January, saying people infected with blood-borne viruses use spitting as a weapon.
The British HIV Association (BHIVA) would like to highlight that there are no cases in the medical literature where HIV has been transmitted by spitting. Guidance from numerous bodies reflects this. The (understandable but misplaced) concern about transmission of HIV from spitting, whether spit is bloodstained or not, in contrast fuels the stigma that already exists around HIV transmission, which is in nobody’s best interest. This is the basis of our advice.
Click here to view our response on twitter.