Colonoscopies put veterans at risk
Infection Control Weekly Monitor, April 1, 2009
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A five-member team from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is investigating a Miami VA hospital that may have put thousands of patients at risk for hepatitis or HIV due to unsafe sterilization practices involving colonoscopies.
A section of tube used in water pumps for colonoscopies and other gastrointestinal procedures was rinsed after each use rather than sterilized as required by the manufacturer, according to the Miami Herald. On March 23, the Miami’s VA Medical Center notified roughly 3,260 patients who received colonoscopies between May 2004 and March 12, 2009 of the possible risk of infection.
Similar problems have arisen at VA hospitals in Murfreesboro, TN, and Augusta, GA, prompting a review by VA officials in early March.
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