Hepatitis B Transmission Between Dental or Medical Workers and Patients

Excerpt

Hepatitis B is a hazard for dental and medical workers who directly or indirectly acquire the infection from their patients. The risk is higher for urban dentists and physicians and increases with years of practice. Dentists, especially oral surgeons, are particularly at risk (1), as are physicians, especially surgeons and pathologists. In one study 14.4% of dentists and 16.0% of physicians had serologic evidence of past or current hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections compared to 4.4% of nonmedical, first-time volunteer blood donors (2). Among physicians, 22.4% in surgical subspecialties had serologic evidence of active or past HBV infections. High-risk hospital