hep c contracted by sharing rolled up bill for snorting cocaine?

i attended a friends party over 2 weeks ago and did something really stupid.i snorted coke with 2 of her friends sharing a rolled up bill/banknote.i only did a few lines but now im terrified i may have contracted hep c through such a stupid,drunken incident.also not sure if this would make a difference but i only placed the bill at my nostril not inside .there was no visible blood as well. i just want to know my potential risk or no risk in this situation.im very scared and will test if need be but please can anyone ease my mind until then?

[can-do-man]

While it would be possible the odds are very low, besides that your friends would have to have HCV......... Should you worry??? I don't really think so.

Best to you........

[worried_sick79]

thank you can-do-man and are you sure that the odds are really low? ive been reading alot of scary posts all over the net that its very high risk..alot contradicting info out there! .:(

[hrsepwrguy]

As can-do said there is a risk but it is very low, accept that answer or go get tested, no one here can say whether or not you have HCV.

[can-do-man]

Very sure, high risk is IV drug use and prior BT. What you discribe don't usually even pop up on the radar....... Sounds like though you might need to get tested anyway to calm your fears.

[nygirl7]

I got it that way but we were hard core partiers and yes most of my friends did in fact have HCV although they did not know it yet then.

For a once in a while user without damage to the nasal cavity I would agree the odds are very low.  

[hrsepwrguy]

Forum rules state no religion or politics.

This is a medical forum.

[crigger]

Like every one else I think this is low risk. If you had sores in your nose and they had bloody sores then maybe .  Be careful out there !

[worried_sick79]

thanks alot guys,this really does ease my mind alot and i thank you all for that. and as for nygirl7 could you safely say that i need to be a hardcore user to be infected? would my nose have to have significant damage for the hep c virus to pass through? i know for a fact there was no blood from the 2 sharing with me.none from me as well...

[nygirl7]

You cant tell if there were microdroplets of blood on the bill or anything - but I think it would take more than a line or two, of course it is still possible but your friends would have to be infected for it to happen. So the chances are low at best.

I'm assuming they have not been tested.

IF you are really worried then get the blood test it's simple, but I doubt you do.

[80mecheng]

Get tested at some point because the majority of patients don't know how they got it.  Don't do it again....then no worries.

[orphanedhawk]

Strangely enough there is a claim that you're more likely to contact it snorting if you use a plastic straw.
Set your mind at ease, get tested.

[worried_sick79]

where abouts is this claim orpanedhawk? also can someone explain the difference between a rolled bank note and a plastic straw when it comes to snorting?.i would have thought the straw would be safer considering how filthy money is...

[orphanedhawk]

It's not about dirt. Dirt doesn't pass hep C, blood does.

It's about cutting the inside of the nostril and getting minute amounts of blood on the straw. Hep C is so tiny, that it can pass in blood which is unseen by the human eye.
When the straw is passed to the next person, they can do the same.
That's the theory I heard.

You can google around and find it if you like.

Good luck.

[worried_sick79]

can someone honestly say that(snorting) is the only 100 PERCENT possible way they were infected? any users that snorted cocaine once and were infected? it seems the majority of those who are infected are IVDU...

[worried_sick79]

also anyone that were in the same boat as myself that recieved a negative or positive hep c result...please anybody!!:(

[hrsepwrguy]

If your worried get tested,it is that simple.

[RainLover71]

If you want to get an accurate result quickly then take the RNA test.It's accurate from 2 weeks+.All the best.

[worried_sick79]

can anyone submit evidence of contracting hep c through intranasal use only?? i already know i need to be tested for peace of mind only but it seems no one can answer that question. im beggining to wonder if there is alot of denial as well...and thats not to be rude.that is fact. even on the cdc they dont have enough evidence for such transmission...so im just getting very confused with all this...

[suezeeque]

I am not judging those who have, but I have never used IV drugs.  I have plenty of skeletons in my closet so I'm not in a position to judge.  ;)

NO ONE here can tell you whether or not you were infected with HCV in the situation you describe.  NO ONE.

"im beggining to wonder if there is alot of denial as well...and thats not to be rude.that is fact."

Please tell me how you have come to the conclusion that is a "fact".

[can-do-man]

Its quite clear your here to play games, please get tested for more then HCV.

[worried_sick79]

because ive read on most hep c sites that is not a likely route for submission compared to iv drug use,blood transfusions etc.. i just want someone to make it clear cut and honestly say they contracted it from cocaine only.why is there not enough evidence for such a transmission? just scare mongering!:( ,even a dr on here said you would be more than likely struck with a meteorite then to be infected by intranasal transmission only.im just researching.like anyone else for that matter.

[can-do-man]

Folks all these threads say it all.

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/HIV-Prevention/extremely-anxious-should-i-test/show/1523808#post_6983020

[RainLover71]

You have already been given the best advice,if this situation is of concern to you then go and test and be done with it.You were given advice from some of the top answers on this forum, 1.That it was a slight risk 2.To have a test.

[worried_sick79]

hahaha and thanks for for judging me on my past threads! that have nothing to do with the matter at hand,how predictable..

[flcyclist]

Your question has already been answered.  The risk is low, but if you're concerned get tested.  You can ask the same questions over and over, but the answer will not change.  We are not doctors.  Go to the following forum for your answer.
http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Hepatitis/show/272

[can-do-man]

Your welcome

[can-do-man]

And the list goes on.

[worried_sick79]

thank you

[worried_sick79]

and now im being ridiculed for having OCD. i would love for someone to come forth that is going through exactly what im going through right now but no im just getting attacked on here.. nice

[hrsepwrguy]

You have no idea what we are going through, we are beyond worring about it we have it.

[johnny679]

Just get tested dont stress to much , calm your OCD , did you lock your car maybe check again haha , anyway on a serious note what you did is stupid but we all do stupid things , low chance . Stay away from drugs

[ceecee444]

hrsepwrguy... you said it.

worried_sick79
No one hear is attacking your threads but giving you the best advice to your questions. With this weighing heavy on you...Your best bet to ease your mind is to go and do the smart thing and GET TESTED as everyone here has stated....take care

[worried_sick79]

my apologies hrsepwrguy as i truely dont know what you guys are going through...im just confused and angry with myself.i never meant to go on and on about it,i will test and post my results.cheers

[orphanedhawk]

I looked at your profile earlier today.
You've posted anxiety posts here and on the HIV  forums for months.

Your problem is anxiety.

Now, please, go deal with your true problem and leave us alone.
You don't have to go away mad, just go away.

[worried_sick79]

thank you and i will leave it be for now...

[worried_sick79]

im quite aware i have anxiety,if i didnt i would not be trying to reach out to you guys! some have been helpful yet some of you on here have been quite nasty with me and i dont deserve that.dont worry i will go way.

[hrsepwrguy]

No worries, many of us are in the middle of a very tough and trying treatment that has some nasty side effects, just accept the excellent advice you have been given and follow through with it. Good luck to you and use this expirience to your advantage in the future.

[GoofyDad]

Man. Blowing up a rubber after the fact? Why don't I ever find wild chicks like that? I hope you let it loose to  fly around the bedroom sending contrails of spewey. How cool would that be?

And yes - nasal transmission happens. I know.

[libzo2]

Love you Goofydad.  Quite a visual!  

Everyone else - I am pretty sure from experience that hep c is transmitted very efficiently through the nose.  My personal story is a weekly poker party where everyone passed the "tray".  This was a group of about 10.  7 of us got hep.  Can't google that.  We need a future vacine for hep c.  

Please be kind to each other.  Riba rage anyone?  Try to be patient with the fear of others.  We are the same, all of us.  No one is a more precious soul than another.  

[nygirl7]

Several of my gang is no longer here. We never did IVDUs together yet somehow at least three of them are dead now of liver disease and another committed suicide but most likely would have passed away from it too and I am pretty far advanced.

Yeah the chances are possible indeed.

For someone with such OCD I am having a hard time how you would do such a thing as snort coke out of a straw...I would think the coke would have made your anxiety INSANE!!!!!!!!!

[nygirl7]

PS

just scare mongering!"

If that's what you think then why are you bugging us with the same question over and over especially when several people have told you that is definitely indeed how they got it?

[1oftheclub222]

i would love for someone to come forth that is going through exactly what im going through right now but no im just getting attacked on here.. nice
____________________________________________________________

Actually, we all have gone through what you are going through, we all went and got tested and got the answers we needed...You should just go get tested, then you will know exactly what we are going through.....and no, I'm not an IVDU, not sure how i got it...

[runsincircles]

I have never used iv drugs and I have it.  I can't even figure how I might have got it.  Here's the bottom line.  If you have piercings, tattooes, ever had dental work, used cocaine, or were born before a certain year you are at a small risk.  Get tested!!  Even my dr didn't believe it when I got my results.  I had to talk her into even giving me the test.

[GoofyDad]

I've told various  docs, RNs and dentists about the nasal transmission vector (don't you love how they're all like "so how did you get Hep anyway" hoping for a tittilating story - like it matters one iota concerning your  treatment for a hangnail) and if they're of an age where they were around in the 80's they'll say "are you sure?" and I'm like "Oh yeah. Well known vector." And the color drains from their face and I'm suddenly less of a freakshow amusement...

Seems they've been to that poker party too.....

So, what happens if the rubber breaks while your blowing it up? That there would be one sticky mess to contend with. Boy howdy.

[libzo2]

The host was a Vietnam vet who once he tested for Hep C and B came back positive, he immediately informed his guests and we adjusted by bringing our own straws.  The vet was sure he was exposed during group innoculations when he was drafted.  Transmission for us came a long way.  None of these people used needles.  Mostly drank a lot with coke on week ends.  Whoopie!

[libzo2]

Oh yeah, we smoked a lot of weed too but we never stuck any joints up our noses.  haha  

Blowing up prophalactics - doesn't every one do that?

[GoofyDad]

Mostly only when we can't find a diaphram to play frisbie with...