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Instituto de Seguridad y Servicios Sociales de los Trabajadores del Estado

2010, Number 1

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Rev Esp Med Quir 2010; 15 (1)

Particular intrahospital outbreak of varicella in medical and paramedical personnel

Sahagún FJE, Silva MMA, Pulido ÁA, Tovar MCE, Miramontes SMJ, García AGJE

Language: Spanish
References: 20
Page: 32-37
PDF size: 206.86 Kb.


ABSTRACT

Objective: To describe the circumstances and characteristics that helped cause the intrahospital outbreak of varicella in medical/paramedical personnel and the control measures implemented.
Participants and method: We performed a study of a number of cases from the clinical review of the index case, we also reviewed their activities within the hospital during infection, and we examined the characteristics that contributed to the spread of the virus. While describing the epidemiological features of space, time and personnel from the index case and control measures implemented.
Results: The index case was a 26 year-old female doctor of internal medicine. We identified 60 of her contacts of which 11 later developed varicella, 10 were doctors and one nurse, all peers of the same guard and all were greeted with a kiss on the cheek. The reported attack rate was 18.3% on the index case. The mechanism of transmission was of direct contact.
Conclusions: The peculiar habit of greeting of the index case was the decisive factor of the outbreak. This fact shows the ease with which this or any kind of contagious infectious diseases can affect our own personnel. Physicians should be aware and respect the fact that working in a hospital makes them susceptible to infection and the spread of infectious diseases. Health standards consider the physician-patient relationship but these standards should be implemented also to consider the relationship between health care workers.


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