With regard to the transmission of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, which one of the following statement if not correct?

examrobotsa's picture
Q: 68 (IAS/2010)
With regard to the transmission of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, which one of the following statement if not correct?

question_subject: 

Science

question_exam: 

IAS

stats: 

0,83,59,83,13,27,19

keywords: 

{'human immunodeficiency virus': [0, 0, 1, 0], 'infected mother': [0, 0, 1, 0], 'infection': [1, 0, 0, 0], 'transmission': [0, 0, 4, 1], 'infections': [1, 0, 0, 0], 'transfusion': [0, 0, 3, 1], 'risk': [1, 1, 2, 4], 'contraction infection': [0, 0, 1, 0], 'childbirth': [0, 0, 1, 1], 'exposure': [0, 0, 1, 2], 'needle': [0, 0, 1, 0], 'blood': [5, 0, 0, 1]}

The statement "The chance of transmission from female to male are twice as likely as from male to female" is not correct. The chance of transmission of HIV is similar regardless of the gender of the infected person.

The other three statements are correct:

- The chances of transmission are more if a person suffers from other sexually transmitted infections. This is because these infections can cause sores or lesions in the genital area, which can provide a portal of entry for HIV.

- An infected mother can transmit the infection, at childbirth and by breast feeding. This is because HIV can be present in the mother`s blood and genital secretions, and can be transmitted to the baby during childbirth or through breast milk.

- The risk of contraction infection from transfusion of infected blood is much higher than an exposure to contaminated needle. This is because a blood transfusion involves a much larger volume of blood than an exposure to a contaminated needle, and therefore has a higher risk of transmitting HIV if the blood is infected. However, both blood transfusions and exposure to contaminated needles can transmit HIV if the blood is infected.

Therefore, the correct answer is "The chance of transmission from female to male are twice as likely as from male to female".