6,800 exposed to HIV or hepatitis at Ottawa clinic

October 17, 2011 in Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Up to 6,800 people may have been exposed to HIV and hepatitis an Ottawa clinic over the past decade, health officials warned Monday.

The capital city's chief public health doctor Isra Levy announced over the weekend that an inspection in late spring had discovered lax cleaning of medical instruments at an unspecified clinic in Ottawa.

On Monday, following a public outcry over a lack of information in the case he told a press conference the clinic in Ottawa's west side was operated by Christiane Farazli, and said she performed endoscopic procedures, including colonoscopies.

"These are no longer performed at the facility which otherwise remains in operation," he added.

Earlier, registered letters were sent to approximately 6,800 patients who underwent an between April 2002 and June 2011, asking them to get tested for HIV and hepatitis.

"Ottawa Public Health believes there is a very low risk that patients may have been exposed to , hepatitis C, or the during the tests," Levy said.

"The risk of associated infection are believed to be less than one million for hepatitis B, less than one in 50 million for and less than one in three billion for HIV."

(c) 2011 AFP

not rated yet  

Rank not rated yet
Related Stories
Relevant PhysicsForums posts

More news stories

Flesh-Eating bacteria no cause for panic, experts say

(HealthDay) -- Despite scary headlines by the score, most people don't have to fear that they'll be the next victim of the so-called flesh-eating bacteria disease, experts say.

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created 19 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

World Health Assembly endorses new plan to increase global access to vaccines

Ministers of Health from 194 countries at the Sixty-fifth World Health Assembly today endorsed a landmark Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP), a roadmap to prevent millions of deaths by 2020 through more equitable access to ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created 23 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Physicians definitively links irritable bowel syndrome and bacteria in gut

An overgrowth of bacteria in the gut has been definitively linked to Irritable Bowel Syndrome in the results of a new Cedars-Sinai study which used cultures from the small intestine. This is the first study to use this "gold ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created May 25, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study provides compelling evidence for an effective new treatment for tinnitus

According to new research, a multidisciplinary approach to treating tinnitus that combines cognitive behaviour therapy with sound-based tinnitus retraining therapy is significantly more effective than currently available ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created May 24, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Infections may be deadly for many dialysis patients

An infection called peritonitis commonly arises in the weeks before many dialysis patients die, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN). The findings sugges ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created May 24, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0


Family history of Alzheimer's affects functional connectivity

(HealthDay) -- Cognitively normal individuals with a family history of late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) may display lower resting state functional connectivity in the default mode network (DMN) of the brain, ...

Travel to high altitudes tied to Crohn's, colitis flare-ups

(HealthDay) -- People with inflammatory bowel disease, which includes Crohn's disease and colitis, may be at increased risk for flare-ups when they fly or travel to high altitudes for skiing or mountain climbing, ...

Transvaginal mesh op restores pelvic organ prolapse at price

(HealthDay) -- Transvaginal mesh (TVM) procedures are effective for anatomical restoration of pelvic organ prolapse (POP), but patients report a worsening of sexual function following surgery, according to ...

Cancer may require simpler genetic mutations than previously thought

Chromosomal deletions in DNA often involve just one of two gene copies inherited from either parent. But scientists haven't known how a deletion in one gene from one parent, called a "hemizygous" deletion, can contribute ...

Inherited DNA change explains overactive leukemia gene

A small inherited change in DNA is largely responsible for overactivating a gene linked to poor treatment response in people with acute leukemia.

Skp2 activates cancer-promoting, glucose-processing Akt

HER2 and its epidermal growth factor receptor cousins mobilize a specialized protein to activate a major player in cancer development and sugar metabolism, scientists report in the May 25 issue of Cell.