So in order to decrease the risk of HIV,

Ideally, people would stop using injectable drugs and get help for their substance abuse. But this is not a perfect world. So in order to decrease the risk of HIV, we must reduce the risk involved with injecting drugs. Disinfecting syringes reduces the risk of HIV by killing any HIV that may have contaminated the syringe. But how does disinfecting work?

Disinfecting syringes works by:

• flushing the syringe removes blood and drugs left over from previous users. This in turn reduces the number of HIV and hepatitis C viral particles.
• using a disinfectant can kill remaining viruses thereby reducing the risk of HIV and hepatitis C infection.

Instructions for disinfecting syringes usually include ways to make sure that viruses are removed and killed.

The Connection Between HIV and Hepatitis C