‘Sharps’ Disposal a Concern

Photo courtesy of FDA

Many people use needles, syringes and lancets—called “sharps”—at home to manage such medical conditions as diabetes, infertility and cancer. But the haphazard disposal of these items puts many people, including waste-disposal workers, family members and children at risk of injury and serious infections.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has created a new web section with information about the safe disposal of needles and other sharps at this website address.

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 9 million people in the US use sharps at home, which equates to more than 3 billion disposable needles and syringes and 900 million lancets every year.

Unfortunately, many sharps used outside of a doctor’s office or hospital are thrown in household trash. The FDA warns that:

• loose sharps should never be thrown away in household- or public-trash containers, toilets or recycling bins
  
• a person who is accidentally pricked by a discarded sharp is at risk of exposure to such blood-borne viruses as hepatitis and HIV.

Message to patients and caregivers

The California Sharps Coalition, a group of organizations focused on the safe disposal of sharps, told the FDA it believes that most people hurt by a discarded sharp do not report the injury.

Even if injuries do not cause infection, they can significantly affect the psychological and financial welfare of the person who must be tested and wait days or weeks to know if he or she has contracted a disease.

Janesia R. Simmons, a public-health advisor in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, says that people using sharps often do not know the safest way to dispose them. “In addition, family members and other caregivers who are taking care of someone in their home may not know what to do,” she says.

The FDA recommends that used sharps be immediately placed in an appropriate disposal container. FDA-cleared sharps containers are generally available through pharmacies, medical-supply companies, health- care providers and online. These containers are made of puncture-resistant plastic with leak-resistant sides and bottom. They also have a tight fitting, puncture-resistant lid.

If an FDA-cleared container is not available, some organizations and community guidelines recommend using a heavy-duty plastic household container, such as a laundry detergent container, as an alternative.

Disposing sharps containers

There are a number of ways to safely dispose of the sharps containers. When the sharps-disposal container is about three-quarters full, follow your community waste guidelines for disposing the container. These guidelines vary depending on where you live. Local trash-collection departments or health departments may have information about sharps-disposal programs. In general they include:

• Drop boxes: Collection sites are located at doctors’ offices, hospitals, pharmacies and police or fire stations.
  
• Hazardous waste sites: Public-collection sites for hazardous materials (e.g., paints, cleaners and motor oil) may also accept sharps containers.
  
• Residential pickup programs: Some communities have pickup services for waste that includes sharps containers.
  
• Mail-back programs: The label on the container should have information on how to mail certain FDA-cleared sharps disposal containers to a collection site for proper disposal.

If you are accidentally stuck by another person’s used sharp, FDA advises that you wash the exposed area promptly with water and soap or a skin disinfectant, (e.g. rubbing alcohol) and seek immediate medical attention.

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