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Monday, December 26, 2011

HIV via tattoo???


is it possible to be infected with HIV via the tattoo's needle ?
well , that what happened to an australian tourist who went to Bali for a holiday , got a tattoo there
came back home and later on found out she/he got HIV
at least , that what he/she claimed

nonetheless...
clinically , is it possible?

let's go to the basic here. how does HIV transmitted? occay , easy as abc ...  number one.. blood to blood... mother to baby and the famous unprotected sex
then,
let's look at how tatoos being "tattooed" on human body..
they use a special needle to paint the artwork on the skin

when we talk about needle..
it's a nature of the needle to prick
and of course ,during the process of tattooing ...
the needle pricked the skin a lot..
contacted with the fat tissue.. and also small vessels
meaning.. anything from the needle.. could go inside the vessel

so , in this case..
one sunday morning..
a HIV person went to the tattoo shop
and got a tattoo on his ass..

and the next person came in into the same shop
let's say some australian tourist he is..
got a tattoo as well...

and apparently the tattoo master use the same needle as he used for the hiv infected customer
and he forgot to clean and wash the needle thoroughly ...

there was a big chance.. the second customer could get the HIV as well
easily infected from the unsterilized needle
the same one used on the HIV patient

well ,
if that the case
he's such an unfortunately guy

moral of the story , dont get any tattoo...

but then.. same scenario also could happen at the barber shop or the sallon
when the barber use the same blade for shaving...

something to think about...

6 comments:

Lotus said...

HIV virus don't survive very long in the environment and this risk of transmission is very2x low. In comparison, hepatitis b and c virus survive a lot longer .

Lotus said...

Also, HIV is now manageable as a chronic illness such as diabetes and it is possible to conceive HIV-negative baby. In developed world, it is expected many retrovirus infected person to live well into their 60-70 years.

Unknown said...

Yes....
The possibility may be small
But seriously.., why take the risk :)

Lotus said...

I suppose its not up to us to judge other people risk taking behaviour? I have seen a number of cases of transmission as a result of contaminated needle used for babies vaccine especially in eastern Europe, contaminated blood products used for haemophiliacs etc...

Perhaps the tattooist should be taught about hygiene practice? Perhaps post-exposure prophylaxis and hep b vaccine should be offered? Just food for thought.

Unknown said...

For these people... They work for the money..
Could not care less about the hygiene or safety as those will only cost them more money.

Why don't we just make life easier not getting tattoo instead...
It is not a necessity anyway :)

Nennie said...

Assalamualaikum Dr.Hannan ,
Best baca blog Dr.Hannan , insyallah saya akan singgah lagi ke sini , terus menulis ya..