How to Sterilize a Syringe to Use Again

Tabular array of Contents

Why It Is Important to Use Clean Needles and Other Injection Equipment
How to Reduce HIV Risk When Injecting Drugs
Drug Treatment Programs
New Needles
Needle Exchange Programs
Cleaning Injection Equipment
Taking Care of Yourself and Others

Why It Is Of import to Utilize Clean Needles and Other Injection Equipment

Sharing Needles and HIV Acquisition

Injection drug use (IDU) accounts for a big number of HIV cases worldwide. Sharing needles, syringes, and drug injection equipment or "works" (including cookers and cotton) allows HIV to be spread from one person to some other. The World Wellness Organization (WHO) estimates that virtually 11 million people inject drugs worldwide, and that 1.four million of them are living with HIV. Globally, ane out of every ten new HIV transmissions is through injection drug use. Even so, that boilerplate is much higher in some areas.

Blood from a person living with HIV can remain in or on a needle or syringe and then be transferred directly to the side by side person who uses that same needle or syringe. Claret that contains HIV can also find its way into drug solutions through:

Using syringes that take fifty-fifty very small amounts of blood on them to prepare drugs
Reusing water
Reusing bottle caps, spoons, or other containers ("cookers") used to dissolve drugs in water and to estrus drug solutions
Reusing small pieces of cotton or cigarette filters ("cottons") to filter out particles that could cake the needle

Hepatitis

People who inject drugs also run a risk getting hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV), both of which are diseases that impairment the liver and are spread through blood. HCV is common in people who inject drugs – the WHO estimates that iv in x people who inject drugs around the world are living with HCV.

Hepatitis is easily spread through sharing needles and other injection supplies, such as cookers, cotton, and ties. Cleaning your pare earlier y'all inject is important. Likewise make certain to throw abroad alcohol pads and cotton wool wipes so that no ane else touches them. If possible, wipe down surfaces earlier injecting. If new needles and injection equipment are not available, cleaning your injection drug equipment with bleach co-ordinate to the directions below can kill HBV; information technology is unclear whether it can kill HCV.

The all-time mode to prevent hepatitis is to use a new needle and syringe each time, and never share any role of your works. Information technology is important to get routinely tested for hepatitis A, B, and C. Inquire your healthcare provider about your risks for getting these types of hepatitis. If available, get vaccinated confronting hepatitis A and B to prevent infection with these two types of the virus; in that location is no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C.

How to Reduce HIV Take chances When Injecting Drugs

If y'all inject drugs, you can reduce your risk of getting HIV and/or hepatitis by:

Using drug treatment programs to get assistance with quitting
Using a new, sterile needle and syringe every time and not sharing needles, syringes, cookers, or cotton wool with others
Using needle exchange programs to get new unused needles and syringes, etc.
If new, unused needles and syringes are not available, thoroughly cleaning used ones before some other person uses them (for instructions, run across below). The Additional Resources section at the end of this fact sheet besides has videos well-nigh how to make clean syringes.

Drug Treatment Programs

Stopping injection drug employ altogether is probably the best thing yous tin can do for your health. This may exist an incredibly hard matter to do, and information technology may not work for everyone. However, it volition remove all hazard of getting HIV and hepatitis from sharing needles, syringes, cookers, and cottons.

Drug treatment programs are available in many countries to aid you terminate injection drug use. Some programs have waiting lists and women with children may demand to make special arrangements. To discover out if this a good option for you, look for a substance use treatment program in your surface area. Come across the Boosted Resource section below for help in finding a program. Also see our fact sheet on Substance Abuse and Habit for more than information on the link between substance employ and HIV and what you can do if you are struggling with substance corruption.

New Needles

If you do inject drugs, information technology is all-time to utilise a new, sterile needle and syringe every time yous inject and not share needles and syringes with others. You might not recollect of yourself every bit having "shared" a needle and syringe if both you and a close friend or associate used them. But sharing needles and syringes with friends tin can be as dangerous as sharing with strangers.

"Street sellers" of needles and syringes may repackage used needles and syringes and sell them as sterile when they are non. Do not assume a needle and syringe are new, even if they seem to be packaged equally new.

Get needles and syringes from reliable sources, such equally pharmacies. In many parts of the U.s.a. yous can purchase sterile needles and syringes without a prescription from a local pharmacy.

Needle Exchange Programs

If yous cannot buy new needles and syringes from a pharmacy, look for a needle exchange program (as well called a syringe exchange program or syringe service program). Needle exchange programs can give new syringes and needles to people who inject drugs to forestall the spread of HIV and other diseases that are transmitted through blood.

Although scientific evidence shows needle exchange programs reduce the spread of HIV and do not increase drug utilize, some people are against them. The WHO strongly supports the use of show-based needle and syringe programs as part of HIV prevention. At that place are needle substitution programs in some countries, simply they are non available everywhere. In the U.s.a., some states accept needle exchange or syringe admission programs, while others do not.

Needle exchange programs offer a good way for people who inject drugs to reduce the risk of HIV manual. In addition, these programs may exist able to help you lot go benefits, medical intendance, and admission to drug handling programs. You tin search for a needle commutation program in the United states of america past clicking here.

Cleaning Injection Equipment

If y'all must share needles and syringes because new, unused ones are not available, e'er make clean the needles and syringes with bleach and water immediately after use and just before using them again. Keep in mind that cleaning with bleach does not brand re-using the equipment adventure-free. Yet, information technology is an important tool to reduce the gamble of infection. To be effective, y'all must advisedly follow the cleaning procedures listed below every time.

Office One

Pour make clean h2o into a cup, cap or something that only yous will use.

Fill the syringe by drawing the water up through the needle to the top of the syringe.

Milk shake it around and tap it to loosen the claret.

Eject out the water and echo at least three times (do not reuse h2o).

Part Two

Pour some undiluted (total-strength, no h2o added) bleach into a cup, cap or something that but yous will employ.

Fill the syringe by drawing the bleach up through the needle to the meridian of the syringe.

Milk shake information technology around and tap information technology. Exit the bleach in the syringe for at least 30 seconds.

Squirt out the bleach and repeat at to the lowest degree iii times (exercise not reuse bleach).

Office Three

Pour new clean h2o into a cup, cap or something that merely yous will use. Don't apply the water from part 1.

Fill the syringe with water, to rinse out the bleach. Fill the syringe past drawing the water upwards through the needle to the height of the syringe.

Shake it around and tap it for at least 30 seconds.

Eject out the water and repeat three times (do non reuse water).

Some tips:

You can brand the cleaning work ameliorate by taking the syringe autonomously, removing the plunger from the barrel and soaking the parts in bleach for at to the lowest degree 30 seconds.
Never shoot or drink the bleach
If the cooker (spoon) must be reused, soak it in bleach for at least xxx seconds so rinse it with clean water
Since bleach gets weaker when it is exposed to light, store all bleach for cleaning needles and works in a container that does not permit light laissez passer through

Taking Care of Yourself and Others

Sharing a needle, syringe, or whatever related equipment for whatsoever apply, including pare popping, tattooing, trunk piercing, or injecting steroids or hormones, tin can put you at adventure for acquiring HIV or other blood-borne infections. If you plan to have a body piercing or get a tattoo, make sure you go to a qualified technician who uses sterile equipment.

The safest thing to do is to stop injecting drugs altogether. If this is not possible right at present, go new, sterile needles each fourth dimension you lot shoot upwardly or notice a needle exchange program. If you lot accept to share, thoroughly make clean your needles and works with bleach and water afterward each use and before reusing.

If you lot are at gamble because you are injecting drugs now or take injected in the past, get tested for HIV and hepatitis. You can as well put your sexual partners at risk if y'all have unprotected sex, so it is important to use condoms and practice safer sex.

The original version of this article (2006) was adapted from materials from the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the University of Albany.

Illustrations from Heart of Richmond AIDS Society (https://www.facebook.com/HeartOfRichmondAidsSociety/)

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Source: https://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/cleaning-equipment-injecting-drugs