Medical Technician Responsible for Hepatitis C Transmission

Article

BERLIN, Germany-German researchers are reporting a medical technician with a cut on his finger accidentally infected five hospital patients with the hepatitis C virus.

The hospital's name and location are not being released.

There have been rare cases where patients have been infected by their surgeons or anesthesiologists, but this is the first case where a medical technician has infected a patient. Hepatitis C is usually spread through intravenous drug use.

The technician reported the case to the New England Journal of medicine. Researchers say the anesthesiology technician did not like to wear gloves because they diminished the sense of touch he needed for his work.

He thinks a small cut on his hand may have passed the virus to the patients. He contracted the virus from a patient during surgery in 1998. Within six weeks, he administered anesthesia to five other patients, all of whom contracted the viral disease.

Genetic analysis confirmed he was the source of the patients' infections.

Hepatitis C attacks the liver and can cause jaundice, fatigue, pain, and vomiting. It can lead to liver damage and cancer. There are an estimated four million Americans who have the virus.

Information from www.exicte.com

Recent Videos
Pathogen Playbook Presenter: Sharon Ward-Fore, BS, MS, MT(ASCP), CIC, FAPIC
Mark Wiencek, PhD
Rebecca Crapanzano-Sigafoos, DrPH, CIC, AL-CIP, FAPIC
The CDC’s updated hospital respiratory reporting requirement has added new layers of responsibility for infection preventionists. Karen Jones, MPH, RN, CIC, FAPIC, clinical program manager at Wolters Kluwer, breaks down what it means and how IPs can adapt.
Studying for the CIC using a digital tablet and computer (Adobe Stock 335828989 by NIKCOA)
Infection Control Today's Conversations with the HSPA President, Arlene Bush, CRCST, CER, CIS, SME, DSMD, CRMST
Infection Control Today's Conversations with the HSPA President, Arlene Bush, CRCST, CER, CIS, SME, DSMD, CRMST
Cheron Rojo, BS, FCS, CHL,  CER, CFER, CRCST
Matthias Tschoerner, Dr Sc
Standardizing Cleaning and Disinfection
Related Content