BACKGROUND: Health care workers (HCWs) are at increased risk of being infected with blood-borne pathogens. AIMS: To evaluate risk of occupational exposure to blood-borne viruses and determine the prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) among HCWs in Georgia. METHODS: The sample included HCWs from seven medical institutions in five cities in Georgia. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information on demographic, occupational and personal risk factors for blood-borne viruses. After obtaining informed consent, blood was drawn from the study participants for a seroprevalence study of HBV, HCV and HIV infections. RESULTS: There were 1386 participating HCWs from a number of departments, including surgery (29%), internal medicine (19%) and intensive care (19%). Nosocomial risk events were reported by the majority of HCWs, including accidental needlestick injury (45%), cuts with contaminated instruments (38%) and blood splashes (46%). The most frequent risk for receiving a cut was related to a false move during a procedure, reassembling devices and handing devices to a colleague. The highest proportion of needlestick injuries among physicians (22%) and nurses (39%) was related to recapping of used needles. No HIV-infected HCW was identified. Prevalence of HCV infection was 5%, anti-HBc was present among 29% with 2% being HBsAg carriers. CONCLUSIONS: Data from this study can be utilized in educational programs and implementation of universal safety precautions for HCWs in Georgia to help achieve similar reductions in blood-borne infection transmission to those achieved in developed countries.
BACKGROUND: Health care workers (HCWs) are at increased risk of being infected with blood-borne pathogens. AIMS: To evaluate risk of occupational exposure to blood-borne viruses and determine the prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) among HCWs in Georgia. METHODS: The sample included HCWs from seven medical institutions in five cities in Georgia. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information on demographic, occupational and personal risk factors for blood-borne viruses. After obtaining informed consent, blood was drawn from the study participants for a seroprevalence study of HBV, HCV and HIV infections. RESULTS: There were 1386 participating HCWs from a number of departments, including surgery (29%), internal medicine (19%) and intensive care (19%). Nosocomial risk events were reported by the majority of HCWs, including accidental needlestick injury (45%), cuts with contaminated instruments (38%) and blood splashes (46%). The most frequent risk for receiving a cut was related to a false move during a procedure, reassembling devices and handing devices to a colleague. The highest proportion of needlestick injuries among physicians (22%) and nurses (39%) was related to recapping of used needles. No HIV-infected HCW was identified. Prevalence of HCV infection was 5%, anti-HBc was present among 29% with 2% being HBsAg carriers. CONCLUSIONS: Data from this study can be utilized in educational programs and implementation of universal safety precautions for HCWs in Georgia to help achieve similar reductions in blood-borne infection transmission to those achieved in developed countries.
Authors: R G Kaczmarek; R M Moore; J McCrohan; J T Arrowsmith-Lowe; C Caquelin; C Reynolds; E Israel Journal: Am J Infect Control Date: 1991-10 Impact factor: 2.918
Authors: Maha Talaat; Amr Kandeel; Walid El-Shoubary; Caroline Bodenschatz; Iman Khairy; Said Oun; Frank J Mahoney Journal: Am J Infect Control Date: 2003-12 Impact factor: 2.918
Authors: A Kasradze; S Shadaker; T Kuchuloria; A Gamkrelidze; M Nasrullah; L Gvinjilia; D Baliashvili; N Chitadze; M Kodani; A Tejada-Strop; J Drobeniuc; L Hagan; J Morgan; P Imnadze; F Averhoff Journal: Public Health Date: 2020-07-29 Impact factor: 2.427
Authors: Carlos Pérez-Diaz; Omar-Javier Calixto; Álvaro A Faccini-Martínez; Juan S Bravo-Ojeda; Carlos A Botero-García; Erika Uribe-Pardo; Yesid F Mantilla-Florez; Fabian Benitez; Ada Duran; Johana Osorio Journal: J Occup Med Toxicol Date: 2015-12-16 Impact factor: 2.646