Syringes used by PWID contained chemical, biological contaminants
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Key takeaways:
- Half of the collected syringes grew at least one bacterial pathogen.
- Many syringes also tested positive for caffeine, diphenhydramine, lidocaine, quinine or xylazine.
An analysis of syringe residue from discarded drug use equipment used by people who inject showed both chemical and biological contaminants in the syringes.
“I work with a team of physicians and harm reduction advocates who provide care for patients who are hospitalized with injection drug use-associated infections,” Laura R. Marks, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, told Healio.
“We wanted to better understand exactly what bacterial pathogens and chemical adulterants people who inject drugs are being exposed to, in the hopes that we can use this information to help provide better harm reduction counseling for our patients,” Marks said.
To evaluate the potential bacterial and chemical contaminants people who inject drugs (PWID) are exposed to, the team assessed previously used injection drug use equipment collected by a harm reduction organization in St. Louis, Missouri, over a 12-month period.
According to the study, syringe residue was analyzed for bacterial contaminants by routine culturing, followed by whole genome sequencing, whereas chemical contaminants were identified by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.
Overall, bacteria were cultured from 94 of 160 syringes analyzed (58.75%), with 30 of the of the samples (23.75%) containing polymicrobial growth. According to the study, Bacillus cereus was the most common pathogen present and was observed in 20.6% of syringe residues, followed by Staphylococcus aureus (18.8%).
Additionally, of the 100 syringes that underwent mass spectrometry, 60% tested positive for caffeine, 85% diphenhydramine, 67% lidocaine, 53% quinine and 59% xylazine. One syringe also tested positive for levamisole in combination with cocaine.
According to Marks, the team was careful to include and assess only syringes that were completely sealed with an intact syringe stopper and a capped needle, which would suggest that at the time these syringes were used, these pathogens were present.
She added, though, they cannot say for sure if the contaminants came from the drugs, whatever liquids were used to dissolve the drugs before injection, the equipment used to prepare the drugs or from the skin of people handling these drugs.
“Street drugs don't come with an ingredients label. It's important to remember that they may contain harmful chemical adulterants and to realize that they aren't manufactured, processed, distributed or prepared under sterile conditions the way medications you might get from a pharmacy or receive in a hospital are,” Marks said. “The high prevalence of bacterial pathogens also underscores the dangers of sharing drug use equipment and the importance of access to sterile needles, syringes and saline for people who use drugs.”
Collapse
Read more about
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts