The so-called Bluetooth – nyaope addicts injecting themselves with a friend’s blood to share the high – was lethal and a recipe for disaster, the South African National Blood Service (SANBS) has warned.
Medical director at the SANBS Dr Jackie Thomson said the risk of transmitting a blood-borne virus or pathogen was greatly increased when passing infected blood from one directly into the vein of another person.
“This is particularly a risk in South Africa, which has one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world,” said Thomson. He said mixing incompatible blood types could also be fatal.
“It can cause different reactions, including an attack on the immune system and severe blood clotting, causing various emergencies including shock, jaundice, collapse of the circulatory system, organ failure and death,” he said.
According to Thomson, the most common blood type in South Africa was O+ and the rarest was AB-.
Two blood types (O- and O+) were known as universal donors, as their blood could be given to any other group.
“Checks and tests needed to establish blood types are obviously not available to members of the public – including injecting drug users – and there is a real threat that the wrong blood type is infused to the other person,” said Thomson.
Meanwhile, nyaope addicts will be beneficiaries of the Anglo American Mine programme to fund addicts who want to go to rehab. This emerged on Friday during a clean-up operation at Soshanguve Plaza, where organisations joined forces to educate drug users about the dangers of the so-called Bluetooth phenomenon.
The operation, held in conjunction with the Rietgat Police Station, saw nyaope addicts from Mabopane and Soshanguve getting together.
Khutsi Malala, the TUT FM breakfast show host who broke the Bluetooth story, said his wish was to rescue the addicts from this practise.
“I noticed the practise and thought, what is it that I can do to help these guys, and that’s when I thought of the operation, which received great attention from many people.”
Tebogo Kgofelo, 29, from Soshanguve, who was at the event, said he had been using nyaope since 2006 and was willing to quit. He said he had been to rehab before, but had a relapse after just a few days.
Another drug user, Karabo Segoati, 27, said he was also willing to quit and was tired of nyaope, which he had been using for a decade.
The police, meanwhile, urged other law enforcement agencies to join in the fight. “We cannot beat this alone; other law enforcement agencies would have to join in for better results,” said Captain Stephen Maluleka of Rietgat police station.
The operation was completed with officials offering HIV testing and counselling to the addicts.