An Unexpected Accidental Needle-Stick Injury

Clinical Image

A 16-year old handicapped boy was undergoing dental treatment for caries under general anesthesia in our hospital. An anesthesiologist gathered blood from him and transferred his blood into spitz tube. After the blood collection, the resident inadvertently discarded syringe mounted with an 18 gauge needle into a biologicalwaste plastic bag without separating the sharp waste. When the scrub nurse managed the plastic bag for biological-waste after operation, she suddenly pained in her right posterior-lateral region of the thigh. Then, she found the needle, which was mounted on blood-remaining syringe, protruded from the plastic bag, and directly realized that this pain was caused by the needle-stick injury (Figure 1). Both the patient and nurse were immediately tested for HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C, resulting serologically negative. In conclusion, the health care worker must take care of not only medical practice but medical waste disposing, because needle-stick injuries sometimes occur [1].

    

    

    Figure 1:  A thick needle (18 gauge) protruded from the plastic bag.