Medical students at risk from needlestick injury

Needlestick injuries are common among medical students and pose a significant health risk, according to a new study (Annals of Internal Medicine 1999;130:45-51).

Although occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens is now widely recognised as a hazard for healthcare workers, medical students may be at particular risk, according to researchers at the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF).

In the first comprehensive, long term study of the subject, researchers led by Dr Emilie Osborn found that 11.7% of medical students surveyed had sustained needlestick injuries or mucosal exposures to blood. …