needle-stick

Established within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Surveillance System for Healthcare Workers (NaSH) defines a percutaneous injury, or needle-stick injury (NSI), as penetration of skin resulting from a needle or other sharp object, which prior to the exposure was in contact with blood, tissue, or other body fluid. Occupational needle-stick injuries are most prevalent within the healthcare sector. Approximately 80% of all workplace NSI in the US occur among healthcare workers (HCW). Various other occupations are also at increased risk of NSI, including but not limited to law enforcement, laborers, tattoo artists, food preparers, and agricultural workers. Though the acute physiological effects of a needle-stick injury are generally negligible, the efficiency with which these devices transmit blood-borne diseases place those exposed to occupational NSI at increased risk of contracting infectious diseases, such as hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV), and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Among healthcare workers (HCW) & laboratory personnel worldwide, more than 25 blood-borne viruses have been reported associated with NSI.