can anyone help answer some questions i have

i woman i know cooked some crack in a test tube she added water and baking soda..after it was cooked she poured in on the table..i know she used needles years ago because she told me thats how she got hep c.i put a piece of it in my mouth just to see if had any taste..and i smoke alittle with her out of a home made pipe it was made from a plastic bottle and had a straw end on it to suck out of it ..i know crack smoking is considered a risk for hep c because of the heating of pipe can burn your lips and cause open sores this was not the case  because the part you suck on is a straw and it didnt  get hot ..we also smoked a joint ,she had a tooth extraction 6 weeks prior to this..she told me she hasnt done needles in years..my questions are i know nothing about iv drug use..does a person who shoot drugs do it from a test tube where it could have been contaminated?then i put the crack in my mouth and could i get blood from sucking on a straw if her tooth was pulled out 6 weeks ago..i imagine her teeth arent in that great of shape..what about the straw up to my mouth or the joint..does this put me at risk..s

[AKHepper]

I don't think you need to worry. This disease doesn't seem to be all that easy to catch, most opinions say there has to be blood to blood contact.
There are other things you might want to worry about with crack, namely heart attacks. Took my best friend a few years back.

[andrea59]

sorry to hear that..trust me never again!!god bless

[andrea59]

was wondering if any one else could comment pls

[frijole]

I doubt seriously that you would have contacted hep C.  If you are worried, get a test in about a month

[nygirl7]

It sounds like you have numerous problems - hep being the least of them.  Stop with the crack and it should help with a bunch of them.

[andrea59]

i know ill never do it again trust me!! im just worried about the shape her teeth are in maybe bleeding gums and if she had and blood in her mouth from the tooth extraction she had 6 weeks ago couldnt i get it if it got on either the cigarrette ,straw  or the joint we had smoked?am i just being paroniod?

[nygirl7]

The doctor surmises that I got hep 20/25 years ago from snorting cocaine in the 80s..............so there you go yes it is possible.........but I snorted a LOTTA cocaine with people who snorted a LOTTA cocaine.

Blood to blood shared disease and all it takes is a drop however unlikely it might seem - just because you can't see it doesn't mean it's not there.

[andrea59]

omg..i guess it is possible that i could have got it if her mouth had any blood in it..and it got on the straw or joint or cigarrete  and touched my lip or got in my mouth some way..seeings as she is hep c positive im very worried now

[susan400]

I think that the easiest thing for you to do to know one way or another, would be just to go to your doctor, or a clinic and tell them that you that you may have been exposed to Hep C.  They don't have to know why you think that you were exposed.  Just ask them to run a hepatitis panel.  Because even if you don't have Hep C, you could have been exposed to Hep B.  That way, you would know one way or the other.  If you were exposed, you could seek treatment before your liver is too damaged and if you were not exposed then, you could put your mind at ease.

Susan400

[andrea59]

thanks  for your reply do you think im at a risk? im scared

[orphanedhawk]

The hows and whys and worries are pointless.
Get checked out if you think you have something wrong.
We can't tell you,even if we were doctors. Only a blood test will let you know.

[andrea59]

i called my local health unit and they told me to wait 2 weeks to come in and get tested..i told them my situation about sharing a cigarrete, joint, and pipe with someone that had hep c i also told them she had a front tooth extraction 6 weeks prior to us sharing these things my test came back negative yesterday.i talked with the nurse she told me this is not usually a route of transmission that further testing isnt nessesary..does that sound resonable..any comments would be appriciated thxs

[JennyPenny2009]

Yes, that is reasonable. Her blood would have to enter your bloodstream and unless she was bleeding and your mouth had open bleeding sores, you can't get hep C. Swallowing the virus does not cause hep C. But, like Susan and nygirl say, you are at risk for many other things doing crack.

[andrea59]

yes i realize crack is bad never again trust me!!! i have been imunized for hep a and b.i was just wondering is testing 2 weeks after sharing  with her resonable? i thought id have to get retested..or was the nurse just saying dont bother because of the situation was minimal risk?

[andrea59]

just wondering if any one could give me some advice..i went to the health clinic in town about a week ago and told them i had smoked a joint shared a pipe  and ciggarrette with a friend that has hep c two weeks ago..they told me i could get tested that day as it had been two weeks..i went back for my results  a week later and they were negative..the nurse told me i dont need further testing as she said the risk of me being infected is slim to nil.seeings as it was casual contact.my question is ..would it show after two weeks..or do i need to go back? thxs in advance

[GSDgirl]

I don't know if it would show that soon BUT it is more of a concern if one snorts from the same straw as other snorters.  A lot of snorters have nasty raw sometimes bloody / scabby mucous membranes in their noses which is a bigger concern especially if your nose is raw and sometimes bloody / with scabs.

Smoking crack sometimes kills the teeth and makes them fall out.

I think you need some rehab rather than this forum.  Good Luck