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Arteries
NEVER
inject into an artery. Arteries carry blood from the heart to body tissue, the
heroin interacts with this tissue (in concentrated form) before making its way
to the heart and eventually the brain where the user wants it. Unlike an IM
injection, where the heroin is put into a single location, an injection into an
artery transports the heroin to a large area. The concern about arterial
injection is the risk of forming blood clots. These can stop the flow of oxygen
to near-by tissue, causing it tissue to suffocate and die. In addition, pieces
of a blood clot can break off and lodge in another location - in some cases,
they can lodge in a more dangerous location like the brain, causing a stroke. Rarely,
an arterial injection may pose a threat to the user's life. In most of these
cases, this will not happen right when the injection is made, as it takes time
for the blood clot to form and in some cases break away and travel to the brain.
However, in some cases there will be an immediate threat to life - if this
happens seek medical attention immediately. Differences You can distinguish between an artery and a vein based upon the pull-back - if you have hit an artery, the blood inside the needle will be bright red and foamy, due to the concentrated amount of oxygen in the blood of an artery.
Most of the time there is no
problem because veins are closer to the surface of the skin, although not all of
these are safe (i.e. hands, wrists, and neck should be avoided). Arteries tend
to run along with veins, just deeper beneath the skin - so if the injector goes
too deep, he may inject into a artery. Injecting into arteries is painful and
can cause a swelling of the tissue. Arteries
are distinct from veins in the following ways:
When
injecting you should always test the vein by injecting a small amount first. If
the injection is painful you should withdraw and inject somewhere else. This
might not seem like a good idea when you don’t have much choice left in
locations, so remember that injecting into an artery dilutes the drug and you
therefore wont get a rush. This should help with your decision to find another
location!
The only way to assure that a user will not inject into an artery, is to not inject drugs at all. However, the moment you know or think you are injecting into an artery STOP. Remove the syringe from the site and inject your gear somewhere else. The less you inject, the less damage that can be done.
You should put ice onto the injection site as soon as possible as this limits the area to which the heroin will spread and will help limit swelling and damaging of the tissue. Massage the area as this encourages the flow of toxins out of the tissue. However, don’t continue doing this if it is painful – it should only be done if its comfortable. Keep the area clean and continue massage and ice treatment for 24 hours. Any swelling should have gone down after 24 hours but the area should still be looked at and treated until you feel that its completely normal.
If the swelling doesn’t go down or the area is very red and painful, seek medical attention immediately. Don’t delay as this could cost you a limb. If you are in any doubt – check it out! It cant hurt to have someone look at it, even just to put your mind at rest.
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Last updated: 28 August 2004 |