Sharp Devices Research Articles

The Prevalence of HIV Seroconversion in Healthcare Workers Following Sharp Injuries and Exposure to Biofluids.

Background and objective Workplace accidents (WPAs) are a common problem worldwide. They are often considered a public health concern due to the potential transmission of infections such as HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C through sharp devices or direct exposure to biofluids. Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) has demonstrated effectiveness in such instances, especially immediately after exposure. The present study aimed to report the prevalence rate of HIV seroconversion following such exposure among healthcare workers (HCWs). Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study involving a database analysis of cases from 2015 to 2024. Central tendency measures were used to describe population characteristics, andrates were calculated using standard methods. Results A total of 514 HCWs were included in the study. The prevalence of WPAs was 13 per 100 HCWs. Regarding WPAs related to HIV exposure, the prevalence was 0.9 per 100 HCWs, with 0% seroconversion thanks to timely PEP. Conclusions WPAs related to HIV exposure are a serious issue for public health systems worldwide. Although protocols are available and no seroconversion cases were reported in the present study, PEP is not always accessible in several settings, increasing the risk of seroconversion. International public policy measures should be uniformly implemented to provide faster access to prophylaxis, educate the personnel, raise awareness about bloodborne diseases, and reduce excessive red tape.

A special type of homicide-suicide: A retrospective study of the characteristics of extended suicide

Extended suicide, a specific type of homicide-suicide event, has severe social consequences yet remains lacking systematic research. This retrospective study investigated 51 cases of extended suicide involving mental disorders in central China with aim of better understanding risk factors for such events and guiding prevention strategies. Over an 8-year period from 2015 to 2022, cases were collected from forensic institutions, and demographic characteristics, case details, and psychiatric data were recorded. The 51 incidents involved 51 perpetrators and 79 victims, with more female perpetrators (58.8%) and more female victims (54.4%). The average age of the perpetrators was 36.1, and most were married (88.2%). Almost all of the victims were family members of the perpetrator, like the most numerous children (64.6%), followed by spouses (24.1%). The most common homicide mode of death was mechanical asphyxia (38.0%), followed by sharp devices (36.7%) and drug poisoning (16.5%). Depressive disorders (76.5%) were the most common diagnosis of mental disorder for perpetrators. The study analyzed the unique characteristics of extended suicide to enrich such data. These findings help strengthen the screening and identification of potential perpetrators and victims to prevent such cases from occurring.

Incidence, knowledge, attitude and practice toward needle stick injury among nursing students in Saudi Arabia.

Needle stick injuries constitute the greatest threat to nursing students during clinical practice because of accidental exposure to body fluids and infected blood. The purpose of this study was to (1) determine the prevalence of needle stick injuries and (2) measure the level of knowledge, attitude and practice among nursing students about needle stick injuries. Three hundred participants undergraduate nursing students at a private college in Saudi Arabia were included, of whom 281 participated, for an effective response rate of 82%. The participants showed good knowledge scores with a mean score of 6.4 (SD = 1.4), and results showed that students had positive attitudes (Mean = 27.1, SD = 4.12). Students reported a low level of needle stick practice (Mean = 14.1, SD = 2.0). The total prevalence of needle stick injuries in the sample was 14.1%. The majority, 65.1%, reported one incidence in the last year, while (24.4%) 15 students reported two incident of needle stick injuries. Recapping was the most prevalent (74.1%), followed by during injection (22.3%). Most students did not write a report (77.4%), and being worried and afraid were the main reasons for non-reports (91.2%). The results showed that female students and seniors scored higher level in all needle stick injuries domains (knowledge, attitude and practice) than male students and juniors. Students who had needle stick injuries more than three times last year reported a lower level of all needle stick injury domains than other groups (Mean = 1.5, SD =1.1; Mean = 19.5, SD =1.1; Mean = 9.5, SD =1.1, respectively). Although the student's showed good knowledge and positive attitudes in NSI, the students reported a low level of needle stick practice. Raising awareness among nursing students and conducting continuing education related to sharp devices and safety and how to write an incident reporting is highly recommended.

The Incidence of Needlestick and Sharps Injuries Among Healthcare Workers in a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background Needlestickinjuries (NSIs) and sharps injuries (SIs) remain significant hazards in most healthcare facilities that expose healthcare workers (HCWs) to blood-borne pathogens (e.g., HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C). This study aims to review the incidence of NSIs and SIs in King Fahad Medical City (KFMC) and correlate this incidence with several parameters related to the event, including age, sex, length of work experience,type of injury, type of instrument causing the injury, type of activity during which the injury happened, nature of the job of the HCWs, and location within the hospital where the injury happened. Methodology This cross-sectional study involves all self-reported documents related to needlestick and sharp injuries among HCWs at King Fahad Medical City (KFMC) in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from January 2017 to December 2020. The data of 389reports of needlestick and sharp injuries detailingincidence and site, shift, type, and instrument related to the incidents were reported to the infection control department for coding and analysis using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS)version 22 (IBM SPSS Statistics, Armonk, NY, USA). Results Our data showed that NSIs/SIs could be caused by a wide range of objects used by healthcare workers, including needles, suture needles, scalpels, and sharp devices. Remarkably, the most common cause of NSIs was handling the sharp object (38.8%), followed by disposing of the sharp object (19.3%).Furthermore, nurses were found to be the highest at-risk category of HCWs experiencing NSIs (49.9%), while medical waste handlers (1.5%) and dentists (1.3%) were least likely to incur injuries. Conclusion This study sheds some light on the incidence rates of NCIs and SIs at KFMCand correlates these rates with several demographical, occupational, and experiential parameters related to these events.

Surgical Subcision for Acne Scars: A Review of Instrumentation.

Subcision is a surgical technique for managing atrophic acne scars. Over time, new instruments have emerged to increase the efficiency, efficacy, and safety of the subcision procedure, including sharp, blunt, and energy-assisted devices. To review the instrumentation used for the subcision of acne scars and to provide clinicians with practical information regarding the selection of instrumentation, with a focus on advantages and disadvantages. A search of PubMed, MEDLINE, and Google Scholar was conducted for articles from January 2000 to June 2022 describing the use of subcision alone for the management of acne scarring. Demographic and clinical data were collected from the included articles. A total of 417 patients from 17 articles were included; 155 patients underwent sharp subcision, 235 patients underwent blunt subcision, and 27 patients underwent energy-assisted subcision. The main indication for subcision was atrophic facial acne scars. Subcision using sharp, blunt, and energy-assisted instruments were all effective in treating atrophic acne scars. Adverse effects common to all subcision methods included erythema and edema. Subcision is a safe and effective modality for the revision of selected acne scars and is a valuable skill set for dermatologists who perform scar revision to master.

XperCT facilitates sharp recanalization for the treatment of chronic thoracic venous occlusive disease in hemodialysis patients.

Our objective was to evaluate the feasibility of XperCT combined fluoroscopy to guide sharp recanalization for the treatment of chronic thoracic venous occlusive disease in hemodialysis patients. The records of hemodialysis patients with chronic thoracic venous occlusive disease who received endovascular sharp recanalization after conventional techniques failed were retrospectively reviewed. The sharp devices used for recanalization included the stiff end of a guidewire, Chiba biopsy needle, RUPS-100 set, and transseptal needle. The needle was advanced toward a target placed at the opposite end of the occlusion and was guided by fluoroscopy and/or XperCT. While the guidewire crossed the occlusion, endovascular procedures such as percutaneous angioplasty were performed for the treatment of the occlusion. The analysis included 32 sharp thoracic vein recanalization procedures in 29 patients. Two attempts in one patient failed, and in one patient the first attempt failed but the second attempt was successful. In one patient, two separate successful procedures were performed, and the other 26 procedures in 26 patients were successful. The overall technical success rate of sharp recanalization was 90%. The mean number of puncture attempts in the combined group was less than that of the fluoroscopy-guided alone group (2 vs 5, p < 0.05). The success rate of sharp recanalization in the combined group was higher (100% vs 86%), and the recanalization time (28.5 min vs 36 min, p > 0.05) was no different. There was no statistical difference in procedure-related complications between the groups. XperCT can facilitate sharp recanalization for the treatment of chronic thoracic venous occlusive disease in hemodialysis patients.

Uterine perforation during intrauterine procedures and its management.

Uterine perforation is a potential, not rare complication of all intrauterine procedures and may be associated with injury of surrounding organs and structures. The incidence, risk factors, possible prevention, dia-gnosis, management and impact on future reproduction is reviewed here. Systematic review of available sources on the topic was carried out using the PubMed database and textbooks of Czech authors. Some risk factors that make access to the uterine cavity difficult may be prevented, however, others remain unpreventable. For patients in whom the perforation occurred during sondage, dilatation or insertion of blunt and cold instrument, without significant bleeding and who are hemodynamically stable, observation is recommended rather than immediate abdominal exploration. The exception are young women planning pregnancy in whom endoscopic suture is indicated. Abdominal exploration is required in patients who have been injured by electrosurgical or sharp device, laser, vacuum curette, who are hemodynamically unstable or show signs of severe bleeding or visceral injury.

The efficacy and safety of blunt impingement followed by a sharp recanalization technique in hemodialysis patients with refractory central vein occlusion: a single-center experience.

BackgroundCentral vein occlusion (CVO) is a serious problem in hemodialysis patients. There is an unsatisfactory result for refractory CVO by sharp recanalization alone. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of blunt impingement followed by sharp recanalization for the treatment of CVO in hemodialysis patients.MethodsThis study retrospectively examined hemodialysis patients with CVO who failed to recanalize using standard guidewire and catheter techniques in our department. In the first instance, all CVOs were recanalized using blunt impingement techniques, including a 6-Fr long sheath (Cook Incorporated, Bloomington, IN USA) and an 8-Fr sheath of Rosch-Uchida Transjugular Liver Access Set (RUPS-100; Cook Incorporated, Bloomington, IN, USA). If this was not successful, sharp recanalization devices were applied, including the stiff tip of a guidewire (Terumo, Tokyo, Japan), the RUPS-100, and the percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage (PTCD) needle (Cook Incorporated, USA). All patients were followed up at least 4 months postoperatively. The technical success rate, arteriovenous access patency rates, and operation-related complications were analyzed.ResultsThe procedural success rate was 100.0% (30 of 30). Thirty patients with CVO underwent blunt impingement with a technique success rate of 70.0% (21 of 30), and 9 patients received sharp recanalization after failed blunt impingement, with a technique success rate of 100.0% (9 of 9). The primary patency rates at 6 and 12 months postoperatively were 86.7% and 53.3%, respectively. The primary assisted patency rates were 93.3% and 63.3%, and the secondary patency rates were 93.3% and 70.0% at 6 and 12 months, respectively. One major procedure-related complication was detected, namely, a small injury of the superior vena cava (SVC) wall in a patient receiving recanalization via the stiff end of a guidewire, but this did not require further treatment.ConclusionsIt is potentially effective and safe for interventionalists to use blunt impingement followed by sharp recanalization techniques to treat chronic CVO that is refractory to traversal using traditional catheter and guidewire techniques.

WO3 Passivation of Access Regions in Diamond MOSFETs

We study the impact of access region passivation on the electrical characteristics of hydrogen-terminated diamond MOSFETs with tungsten Carbide (WC) edge contacts. Our experiments reveal a significant improvement to both contact and extrinsic channel sheet resistance once the access regions are passivated with WO <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> , indicating that WO <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> is an effective surface transfer-doping agent. We analyze a peculiar bump that appears in the subthreshold characteristics of the devices that prevents their effective turn-off. The bump is found to be mitigated when the access regions are passivated by WO <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> . Poisson–Schrödinger (P–S) simulations suggest that this bump arises from the field-effect action by the gate over the access region immediately adjoining the gate. This parasitic field effect arises when the surface is unpinned and with a light hole concentration. Owing to its increased surface transfer doping, the use of WO <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> as surface passivation is effective in delivering a sharp device turn-off.

Surgical technique for superselective neck dissection under local anesthesia in recurrent head and neck cancer.

The aim of this paper is to describe a safe and effective surgical technique for neck dissection under local anesthesia. An increasing number of patients cannot undergo general anesthesia due to systemic complication arising from old age. Moreover, the long-term survival of patients with recurrent or metastatic cancer due to advances in chemotherapy has increased the necessity of neck dissection under local anesthesia. Appropriate pain control and selection of medical devices are important factors for success of the surgery under local anesthesia. In addition to the usual subcutaneous infiltration anesthesia for pain control, nerve blocks for each cervical nerve encountered during surgery are extremely effective. Since muscle relaxants are not available, sharp devices such as knife or scissors, instead of electric scalpel, should be used to prevent unexpected muscle contractions caused by electric current. This video presents well-proven techniques and technical tips for superselective neck dissection under local anesthesia.

Characteristics of needlestick and sharps injuries of the hands in the operating room among orthopedic surgeons in Japan.

Among the reports on needlestick and sharps injuries (NSIs), many are orthopedic-related due to the frequent use of sharp devices such as pins and wires. This study aimed to identify high-risk instruments, the most common injury sites for each instrument, and the circumstances of NSIs of the hand during orthopedic surgeries in Japan. Incidents of exposure to blood or bodily fluids among physicians during orthopedic surgeries reported to the Japan-EPINet between 2000 and 2015 were included in this study. The four most common devices were identified and the associations among years of experience, equipment users, and injured sites were analyzed. We identified 666 cases of NSIs affecting orthopedic surgeons in the operating room. The instrument most frequently responsible for NSIs was suture needles, which were involved in 265 cases (39.7%). The second most common instrument was pins/wires, which was involved in 111 cases (16.6%). NSIs of the hands of orthopedic surgeons were frequently caused by suture needles used in all surgeries, but relatively often caused by orthopedic devices. Orthopedic surgeons must be aware that they are at risk of NSIs and must take appropriate measures and always be cautious when performing surgery, regardless of their years of experience.

Incidence, Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Toward Needle Stick Injury Among Health Care Workers in Abha City, Saudi Arabia.

BackgroundA needle stick injury is a serious occupational health hazard in health care settings. Health care workers are at risk of bloodborne diseases and the psychological consequences of these injuries. This study aims to estimate the incidence of needle stick injuries among healthcare workers during the previous 12 months and to assess their knowledge, attitude, and practice toward these injuries.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted from 1st August 2019 till 15th February 2020, and included 786 healthcare workers in Abha city, Saudi Arabia. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data.ResultsThe incidence of needle stick injury among healthcare workers during the previous 12 months was (91/786) 11.57%. Nurses, females, and Saudis reported most needle stick injuries. More than half (52.7%) of the injuries went unreported. About 52.7% of needle stick injuries occurred during using sharp devices, and 42.9% of injuries happened in the patient room. The incidence of needle stick injury was significantly higher among those working at the secondary healthcare level (p = 0.003) and those practicing surgery (p < 0.001). Out of 786 participants, 94.7% knew the definition of needle stick injury, and 81.0% were aware of the procedure and guidelines to follow on sustaining a needle stick injury. Only 61.2% recognized that the recap of the needle is not recommended. Almost half of the participants (47.1%) agreed, and 33.6% strongly agreed that needle stick injury is preventable. A majority of healthcare workers (89.1%) had been vaccinated against Hepatitis B. Nearly 27.5% of healthcare workers incorrectly practiced recapping the needles with two hands and 8.7% bent needles before disposal. Recapping the needles was statistically significantly higher among healthcare workers who had a history of needle stick injury (p = 0. 046).ConclusionNeedle stick injury and its under reporting among healthcare professionals is still a prevalent risk. Raising awareness among healthcare workers and improving the reporting systems for needle stick injuries to ensure more protection and early use of post-exposure prophylaxis is required. Implementation of safety precautions and safe injection practices and providing engineered safety devices may further reduce the risk.

Awareness of Hazard Risks and Prevention Among Orthopaedic Surgery Residents in South East Nigeria.

Background:Orthopaedic surgery is a specialty that deals with a lot of complex and delicate procedures which involve the use of power tools as well as handling of sharp tools and bony spicules, which, among other things, expose trainees to day-to-day hazards which can predispose them to an array of health challenges and burden the health sector. Knowledge of different measures in minimizing some of these risks can go a long way to saving lives and resources.Objectives:This study aims to determine the level of awareness among orthopaedic surgical residents about various hazards and risks and to ascertain their views on the prevention thereof to guide certain decision-making concerning surgical hazard risk reduction.Materials and Methods:A cross-sectional survey of orthopaedic surgery residents in South East Nigeria was conducted using a structured questionnaire designed using the free software Google® Form and was electronically distributed randomly to orthopaedic surgery residents in southern Nigeria using platforms including WhatsApp and Telegram. The data obtained were analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) statistical software version 26. Consent was obtained from all respondents by outlining a clear statement of consent at the beginning of the form.Results:At the end of the study period, 49 surgical residents completed and submitted the questionnaire. There was a significant level of awareness of surgical hazard risks among the surgical residents, with over 90% agreeing to radiation exposure, needlestick injury, and inhalation of smoke being the major surgical hazard risks encountered in orthopaedic surgery practice. Over 95.9% of the respondents agreed that the use of sharp collection devices can help reduce needlestick injuries. All respondents agreed that the provision of adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) can help reduce surgical hazards. It was noted that the majority of the respondents (65.3%) had their preliminary knowledge about exposure to surgical hazard risks and appropriate safety measures during their undergraduate education. About 30.6% were aware of a surgery hazard risk safety guideline in their training centres, whereas only 65.3% of those people have studied the guidelines. There was no statistically significant associations between the level of training and marital status and those who had studied the surgical hazard risk guidelines available in their centres (P = 0.086, χ2= 2.942; P = 0.715, χ2=0.133, respectively). All of the residents know that immunization can help reduce the impact of disease risk among the surgery staff, but only 73.5% have completed a hepatitis B immunization and 55.1% have completed the tetanus immunization.Conclusion:Surgical hazards risks are important issues that need to be addressed and measures regularly reviewed appropriately to ensure and maintain the safety and health of the orthopaedic surgical and all other health personnel. There is a significant level of awareness of surgical hazard risks and prevention measures among orthopaedic residents, but the level of compliance to safety guidelines is not yet optimal.Recommendation:PPEs and sharp collection boxes should always be available in theatres and measures should be taken to encourage residents’ adherence to studying and practicing established surgical safety guidelines in their hospitals and also completing their immunization schedules.

Prevention of needle-stick injury among nurses in an acute ward of a hospital: a best practice implementation project.

This evidence implementation project aimed to identify barriers leading to needle-stick injuries (NSIs) and to develop implementation strategies to prevent NSIs in the acute ward of a hospital in central Taiwan. The incidence rate of NSIs was 5.6% in the acute ward of a hospital in Taiwan. NSIs commonly occur during the drawing of blood, intravenous insertion, needle recapping, or performing any procedure involving sharp medical devices. NSIs are critical occupational risks among healthcare workers, possibly leading to transmission of infectious diseases, especially blood-borne viruses, such as HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C. A clinical audit was undertaken using the JBI Practical Application of Clinical Evidence System (PACES) and the Getting Research into Practice (GRiP) approach. Five audit criteria that represented best practice recommendations for prevention of NSIs were used. Baseline data were collected from 177 nurses in five acute wards, followed by the implementation of multiple strategies during a 20-week period of the project. Both baseline and postimplementation audits were undertaken to determine changes in practice. According to the pre-audit concerning the use of safety-engineered injection devices and safe use and disposal of needles, there was 14-15% compliance, which indicated poor compliance with current best-practice criteria. Following the project implementation, the nursing staff were educated about the well tolerated use and disposal of sharps and the improved compliance rate ranged from 40 to 96.6%, with safety needle use increasing from 16 to 95.5%, safety needle operation procedure awareness increasing from 14 to 96%, needles not recapped after use increasing from 47 to 85%, and placing used needles in the sharps collection box increasing from 75 to 80%. This article suggests that standardized puncture prevention education and training enhanced nurses' awareness in the acute ward.

Sharp recanalization for treatment of central venous occlusive disease in hemodialysis patients

BackgroundThe purpose of the present study was to evaluate the technical feasibility and safety of sharp recanalization for central venous occlusive disease (CVOD) in patients requiring hemodialysis. MethodsPatients with CVOD requiring hemodialysis who had undergone endovascular recanalization using sharp devices, including the stiff end of a guidewire, Chiba needle, or RUS-100 to cross occluded segments after conventional techniques had failed were included. The needle was guided toward a target placed at the opposite end of the occlusion. Although the guidewire was passed though the occlusion, subsequent procedures such as percutaneous transluminal angioplasty could be performed. ResultsA total of 27 sharp recanalization procedures in 25 patients were performed. Two attempts failed, 1 patient had undergone two separate successful procedures, and 23 procedures in 23 patients were successful. The overall technique success was 92.6%. The stiff end of a guidewire was the first choice for all the procedures, and recanalization was achieved in 18 patients (66.7%). A Chiba biopsy needle was used in six procedures (22.2%), with 100% technical success. A RUPS-100 set was used in two procedures (7.4%), with one aborted because of concern for complications. The occlusion was subsequently crossed using a Chiba needle. Four minor adverse events (two of mediastinal hematoma and two of chest pain) had occurred, and two major adverse events (pericardial tamponade and acute pleural effusion in one patient [4%], treated with the guidewire stiff-end technique, who recovered after drainage) had occurred. ConclusionsSharp recanalization is safe and feasible with high technical success for CVOD in patients requiring hemodialysis who cannot be recanalized using conventional techniques.

Stabilizing electroluminescence color of blue perovskite LEDs via amine group doping

Voltage loading-induced change in the electroluminescence (EL) wavelength of mixed halide perovskite light-emitting diodes (PeLEDs), so-called color-shift, has become an inevitable phenomenon, which is seriously unfavorable to their applications in lighting and display. Here, we achieve color-stable blue PeLEDs via a hydrogen-bonded amine-group doping strategy. Selecting guanidine (GA) or formamidinium (FA) as amine-group (−NH2) doping source for CsPbBrxCl3−x quantum dots (QDs), experimental and theoretical results reveal that the strong N−H⋯X (X = Br/Cl) bonding can be produced between −NH2 dopants and Pb−X lattices, thereby increasing the migration barrier of halide anions. Resultantly, color-stable sky-blue devices were realized with emission peaks fixed at 490.5 (GA) and 492.5 (FA) nm without any obvious shift as the voltage increases, in sharp contrast devices without N−H⋯X producing a 15 nm red-shift from 487 to 502 nm. Not only that, maximum external quantum efficiency is improved to 3.02% and 4.14% from the initial 1.3%. This finding offers a convenient boulevard to achieve color-stable PeLEDs with high efficiency.

WITHDRAWN: Prevention and control of motor vehicle exhaust pollution based on internet of things system and cloud computing

Abstract The Internet of Things (IOT) from the sharp wearable device to the cutting edge structure, offers a portion of our good conditions in various pieces of step by step life. In any case, it is furthermore, explicitly, at the physical layer, brings eminent security and consistent issues. Also, a huge number of IoT plan that are passed on dependent on cause progression and the cloud. Consistency of IoT of the security are dependent upon the cloud comprehensive. It gives a foundation for keeping up human life and unseemly treatment of such parts prompts debasement of the basic segments of the organic framework. This is one of the most critical issues related to the perseverance of nature and people's incongruity. The development of motor vehicles, an augmentation of air pollution is the essential driver of normal defilement. Smoke delivered from vehicles Nitrogen Oxides (NOx). It is made out of a gas, for instance, Carbon Monoxide (CO) and Hydro Carbons (HC). Vehicles emit hydrocarbon gas causes a risky air pollution, vehicle release nitrogen oxide gases delivered from our carbon monoxide and about part of the first in the earth, surge levels moreover appeared, database owner of the vehicle that has been saved. The owner is to neglect it, the report will be sent to the full nuances and the Department of transportation.

A Study of Occupational Exposure to Patient's Blood and Saliva among Dental Students of Shahid Sadoughi Yazd University in 2016-2017

Introduction: Occupational exposure in dentistry is defined as exposing the skin or mucosa to blood, saliva, or infectious discharge of the patient. Dentists are in contact with sharp and high-speed rotary devices that increase the chance of occupational exposure. The purpose of this study was to determine the occupational exposure to blood and saliva of patients in dental students of Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciencesin 2016-2017. Methods: A descriptive analytical study was conducted on 70 senior dental students at the School of Dentistry of Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences in Yazd, Iran. A standard questionnaire was used for collecting the data. After collecting the data, they were coded and entered into the SPSS 20 software and analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square and Fisher exact test. Results: Based on the results, 49 (70%) of 70 students have been suffered from sharp devices. The skin or mucosa of the 62 students (88.6%) infected with saliva or other body fluids of the patients. Only 15.7% of the injuries were reported with sharp objects and 14.3% of mucosal-skin contamination with blood or saliva. Conclusion: Occupational exposure in dentistry environment is a common problem and many cases, which are related to these subjects were not reported. In order to reduce the risks of this, infection control issues should be taught to dental students. Therefore, occupational exposure management, follow-up centers and guidelines should be established for dental schools.

Intervention to Reduce Needle Stick Injuries

Introduction: Healthcare workers face the risk of infection from potentially deadly diseases from the use of unsafe needles every day. It has been estimated that over 350,000 needlestick and sharps related injuries occur annually with an average of 1,000 infections annually and over 100 deaths by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control &amp; Prevention). It has been reported that 0.6 cases in average of needle stick injury incident occurred in KPJ Seremban almost every month in 2008. Analysis was done and it was that found that the majority of cases were due to failure to adhere to universal precautions. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was done (January to December 2008). Data was collected from reviewed incidence reports. Statistics showed that needle stick injuries occurred after a procedure and during disposal of used needles. We then introduced several measures with these aims; to inculcate ‘Safety Culture’ among healthcare workers through quality training, to ensure that all newly qualified healthcare workers are well trained in handling sharp devices, to reduce the incidence of needlestick injuries, to do effective monitoring audit, to convey knowledge to healthcare workers on safety practices by Infection control team. These strategies included; High quality education and training to all staffs conducted continuously, identifying those at risk, introduce safer medical devices – using of Angiocath for setting IV line and needle-less injection port and providing for a secure work environment. Results: 1) Needle stick injury cases reduce 65% as compared to last year. 2) Through surveys and questionnaires, 95% of healthcare workers understand and adhere to universal precautions in 2009 as compared 30% in previous year. 3) Number training conducted increased from 7days in year 2008 to 21 days in year 2009. Conclusion: Collaborative and participative approaches are helpful in reducing the transmission of blood borne pathogens and other sharps-related injuries.

Anxiety and perceived psychological impact associated with needle stick and sharp device injury among tertiary hospital workers, Vientiane, Lao PDR.

Occupational needle stick and sharp injuries (NSSIs) affect healthcare workers’ (HCWs’) mental health, however, limited evidence is available on the psychological impact of NSSIs, especially in developing countries where most of NSSIs have been reported. A cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the anxiety and psychological impact regarding NSSIs among HCWs at tertiary hospitals in Lao PDR. In this study, four among seven items of anxiety scale in Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) (Cronbach’s α=0.80) was applied. Participants who experienced NSSIs in the past 6 months showed significantly higher anxiety scores than those who did not experienced (p=0.004) and the average anxiety scores was high shortly after the NSSI. The 42.7% of them were more afraid of needles and sharp devices in the 2 wk after the NSSI than the time of the interview. The results encourage developing countries to adapt a comprehensive NSSI management policy including not only to take adequate precaution measures but psychological support and treatment for HCWs from immediately after NSSIs to improve safety for HCWs and patients. Further studies are needed to develop normative psychiatric scales with cultural adaptation in developing countries which provide convenient mental disorder assessment after NSSIs.