Hepatitis C fears see women tested
Updated on 06 June 2007
Thousands of women who were treated by health workers suffering from hepatitis C are being offered screening amid fears they may have been infected with the disease.
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) said around 3,000 patients were being contacted following a review of case notes from 23 hospitals in England and five in Scotland.
The women have been sent a letter by their health trusts or boards asking them to take a blood test for the virus, which can cause liver disease.
The scare involves the separate cases of two infected health workers who were employed in the obstetric and gynaecology departments of UK hospitals.
The review is an extension of two previous patient reviews which were recommended by the UK Advisory Panel for Health Care Workers Infected with Blood-borne Viruses (UKAP). These were ordered in February and April 2005, after it emerged that the workers were suffering from the disease.
More than 2,000 women who underwent high-risk treatment such as Caesareans and hysterectomies were offered screening. Five patients were later found to have contracted hepatitis C.
A further review was then undertaken to assess the risk posed to female patients who had lower-risk procedures carried out at the hospitals concerned. This has now been completed and UKAP has advised the NHS that these women - around 3,000 - are screened.
NHS Ayrshire and Arran, one of the affected Scottish health boards, has sent letters to 236 former patients. One of the infected healthcare workers was employed at its two hospitals between May 1990 and June 1991.
Dr Maida Smellie, a consultant in public health medicine, said: "I understand that this news may cause anxiety to some people, but I want to emphasise that the risk is very small, and that we are offering screening purely as a precaution."
Hepatitis C is a virus which can lead to inflammation of the liver. Symptoms include feeling sick and suffering abdominal pain and jaundice.
These news feeds are provided by an independent third party and Channel 4 is not responsible or liable to you for the same.
