A June, 1991 estimate shows that magnitude of the American AIDS crisis to be 115,984 dead, 182,834 suffering with AIDS, and 1 million HIV positive (CDC). Intravenous (IV) drug users have been identified as major vectors for the spread of AIDS in the general population because of sharing and re-use of hypodermic needles. With no vaccine in sight and re-education long and sometimes ineffective, a technological solution to discourage needle-sharing is imperative. One such solution is the development of a competitively priced, single- use automatically and permanently retracting syringe. The purpose of this proposal is to build working prototypes of an innovative solution to the retraction function. A patent search made during the patent application process shows that the proposed device to be the only one of its kind. The unique location of the retraction spring produces a retraction force three hundred percent greater that other patents while tremendously enhancing reliability and lowering cost. Experts in the field of material/science and medical device manufacturing, who have evaluated this concept, have unanimously concluded that the proposed approach is feasible. They have also concluded that device designs utilizing lessor amounts of spring energy are unlikely to prove reliable. This proposal fully addresses the problems of design, materials selection for reliability, cost and manufacturability.
