Anesthesia Misuse Could Lead To Hepatitis Transmission

Bethesda, MD, United States (AHN) – A new study finds hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) can be transmitted during intravenous (IV) administration of anesthesia. In the study, doctors found that anesthesia contamination — not endoscopy contamination — was the cause of infection.

The findings highlight the fact that many instances of health care-related HBV and HCV virus transmission probably go undetected.

Doctors investigated an outbreak of acute HBV and HCV infections among patients who received anesthesia during endoscopy procedures from the same anesthesiologist in two different gastroenterology clinics. All of the patients affected received propofol from this anesthesiologist, who inappropriately used a single-use vial of propofol for multiple patients.

These findings are consistent with other investigations of HBV and HCV infection in health-care settings. Researchers have found that contamination of anesthesia or other IV medications was far more likely to be responsible for transmission of HBV or HCV than the equipment used in the patients’ medical procedures.

The findings in their entirety can be read in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute.

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