The purpose of this study was to determine whether an exaggerated response to a mildly painful stimulus would reflect abnormal levels of psychological distress in patients and, conversely, whether patients who show abnormal levels of psychological distress would have a low tolerance for a mildly painful stimulus. A total of 101 patients were given a mildly painful stimulus (30-gauge needle stic...

background: occupational exposure to percutaneous injuries is a substantial source of infections with blood-borne pathogens among health-care workers. few studies evaluated injection safety practices in saudi arabia. objective: to examine the structure and process of injection safety at primary health care level in jazan health district, to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices of primar...

blood and body fluid exposure is a major occupational safety problems for health care workers. therefore, we conducted a descriptive and retrospective study to identify the characteristics of blood exposure accidents in health care settings which lasted five years (2005-2009) at the two university hospitals of sfax. we have 593 blood exposure accidents in health care settings 152 (25.6%) health...

over 170 million patients worldwide are chronically infected with hepatitis c virus ( hcv ); making it a globally important infection. dentists constantly handle sharp instruments infected with biological fluids and are therefore considered at high-risk of contracting hcv infection. needle-stick injuries seem to be the most common route of exposure to blood-borne pathogens in dental practice. m...

BACKGROUND Healthcare workers face the risk of acquiring blood-borne infections from patients through needle stick injuries. Understanding the factors that are associated with increased risk, for example, the role of the dominant hand, is important so that preventive measures can be focused. METHODS The EPINet (Exposure Prevention, Information Network--a trade mark of Virginia University) que...