hi I seem to remember a few years back someone getting a cut on the back of his hand by some stainless steel tying wire. I also seem to remember something about getting cut on stainless could cause some kind of infection/problems with the healing process. Can anybody shed some light on this Regards Harry

Hi Harry Cuts from stainless steel shouldn't be any different from other sharp/metal cuts, although steels can be coated in an oil-based preservative which could add additional infection hazards. Banding wire and steels (unless stainless/coated, etc) that are stored outside or in other adverse conditions are susceptible to oxidation and possibly rat urine (Leptospirosis/Weils disease) which can be an additional source of infection. The answer would be to ensure adequate industrial gloves are worn and prompt hand washing and first aid /disinfectant procedures are in place. Regards Pete

Jane Stainless steel is technically chrome-nickel-steel. Chrome and nickel are both common skin sensitisers. However, reactions to these substances from stainless steel is extremely uncommon as they are so tightly bound into the alloy that no ions are being released and thus even an already sensitised person will not react. Some cheaper forms of stainless steel can release nickel if in contact with something such as sweat, but this is also uncommon. There is a simple and quick method of testing for bioavailability of nickel in metals. It is called the dimethylglyoxime test. A small quantity of this substance diluted in ethanol is applied, usually with a cotton wool bud. If there is free nickel it will show up red. The test kit is commercially available from Crawford Pharmaceuticals. Chris

Are we busting this myth then... looks like it.

MEden380 There are hundreds of grades of stainless steel of differing composition, so it is likely that any effects reported are only attributable to certain grades. See the Wikipedia article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stainless_steel to get a flavour of the complexity of the alloy system. Some scalpels are made of steel of particular grades http://en.wikipedia.org/...urgical_stainless_steel, some are made from ceramics, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scalpel.