Abstract
In response to recent concerns about risk of HIV-1 transmission from drug injection paraphernalia such as cookers, ethnographic methods were used to develop a descriptive typology of the paraphernalia and practices used to prepare and inject illegal drugs. Observational data were then applied in laboratory studies in which a quantitative HIV-1 microculture assay was used to measure the recovery of infectious HIV-1 in cookers. HIV-1 survival inside cookers was a function of the temperature achieved during preparation of drug solutions; HIV-1 was inactivated once temperature exceeded, on average, 65°C. Although different types of cookers, volumes, and heat sources affected survival times, heating cookers 15 seconds or longer reduced viable HIV-1 below detectable levels.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 194-199 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes and Human Retrovirology |
Volume | 22 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 1 1999 |
Keywords
- Drug injection practices
- Ethnography
- HIV-1 transmission
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology and Allergy
- Immunology
- Virology