BACKGROUND Accidental needlestick injuries sustained by health care workers are a common occupational hazard in health care settings. The aim of this study was to review the epidemiology of needlestick injuries in Buraidah Central Hospital, a 212-bed secondary care hospital in Buraidah, Saudi Arabia. METHODS We conducted a retrospective survey of all self-reported documents related to needles...

Results 57.7% of respondents were aware of the term Standard Precautions (SPs) overall. Doctors (94.4%) and nurses (84.2%) had the highest levels of awareness compared to 3.0% of health assistants. There was a significant relationship between the respondents’ level of education and a correct knowledge of SPs. (Fisher’s Exact= 125.745, df = 4, p = 0.000) and duration of employment was not signif...

Microbiology laboratories use containment equipment such as safety cabinets and isolators or respiratory protective equipment to protect workers against aerosol infection hazards. There is a perception amongst microbiologists that using sharps within containment equipment would increase the operator’s chance of accidental injury due to losses of dexterity within containment and so respiratory p...

Despite being recognized for many years, needle stick and sharps injuries (NSSIs) continue to present a risk of occupational exposure to blood-borne pathogens for health care works (HCWs). This study was conducted to investigate the epidemiological characteristics of needle stick and sharps injuries (NSSIs) among healthcare workers (HCWs), their follow-up and immunization status for hepatitis B...

Ictal epileptiform discharges (EDs) are characteristic signal patterns of scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) or intracranial EEG (iEEG) recorded from patients with epilepsy, which assist with the diagnosis and characterization of various types of epilepsy. The EEG signal, however, is often recorded from patients with epilepsy for a long period of time, and thus detection and identification of EDs...

BACKGROUND Blood and body fluid exposures place healthcare workers at risk for blood-borne infections. To determine the extent of the problem in Iran, we assessed blood and body fluid exposure in healthcare workers in Fars Province hospitals. METHODS We distributed 2,118 questionnaires using a stratified random sampling method among nurses of these hospitals. We used Chi-square test, Student'...