"Drug users have found a dangerous and cheap way to get a high that is fueling a surge in HIV diagnoses. Called 'bluetoothing', the practice involves injecting yourself with the blood of another drug user in an effort to share in their high. Already common in Fiji, the practice has driven an 11-fold surge in HIV cases on the Pacific island nation in just a decade."
"There are now concerns that the practice, also known as 'flashblooding', could come to the US, where the rate of new HIV diagnoses has dropped 12 percent over the last four years. Dr Brian Zanoni, a drugs expert at Emory University, warned: 'In settings of severe poverty, it's a cheap method of getting high with a lot of consequences. 'You're basically getting two doses for the price of one.'"
Bluetoothing, also called flashblooding, means injecting oneself with another drug user's blood to try to share their high. The practice is common in Fiji and has driven an 11-fold increase in HIV cases there over a decade. About 18 percent of drug users in parts of South Africa reportedly use the method, and it has been linked to elevated HIV rates among users. Bluetoothing poses significant transmission risk and may deliver a diminished or placebo-like high. Concerns exist that the practice could spread to the United States amid widespread illicit drug use, raising public health alarms.
Read at Mail Online
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