Four THOUSAND patients risk HIV after insulin pens were re-used, New York hospital warns

South Nassau Communities Hospital on Long Island is encouraging thousands of patients to undergo testing for hepatitis A, B and HIV

More than 4,200 patients may have been infected with the viruses through the re-use of single-use insulin pens

A nurse was overheard to say re-using the pens with a new needle was safe

Contaminated blood could have gone back into the cartridge, which then may have been used on another patient

The hospital says risk of infection is very low and testing is being performed out of 'an abundance of caution'

More than 4,000 patients have been warned they could have been exposed to HIV and hepatitis at a New York hospital after insulin pens used to treat diabetes were reused on more than one person. 

South Nassau Communities Hospital in Oceanside on Long Island, near New York City, said 4,200 patients may have received insulin from the pens - not a single-use disposable needle - that could have been used on more than one patient from as far back as 2011.

'The risk of infection from this is extremely low,' the hospital said in a statement, adding it was recommending patients 'be tested for hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV.'

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Reused: Patients who were injected with single-use insulin pens used on more than one person may have been infected with hepatitis A, B and/or HIV

When asked if anyone was confirmed to have been infected a hospital spokeswoman said 'not to my knowledge.'

The pen-shaped insulin injector devices are often used by hospitals to give the hormone to patients and contain a reservoir or cartridge, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say.

 

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The pens should be limited to one patient because regurgitation of blood into the insulin cartridge can occur after injection, creating a risk of blood-borne pathogen transmission, even when the needle is changed, according to the CDC.

Hospital spokesman Damian Becker said no one was observed reusing the insulin pen reservoir, but a nurse was heard saying it was all right to do so.

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'Abundance of caution': Hospital officials from the South Nassau Communities Hospital say the risk of infection is low

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Mail out: More than 4,000 patients have received this letter urging them to undergo free testing for hepatitis A, B and HIV

He says the hospital was recommending testing out of an 'abundance of caution.'

So far, only 200 of the more than 4,000 patients who were warned have signed up for free blood testing, WABC-TV reported.

The hospital seems to have changed its policy on the devices, though it was unclear when the change occurred.

'South Nassau has already implemented a hospital-wide policy that bans the use of insulin pens and permits only the use of single-patient-use vials to administer prescribed insulin treatments to patients,' a statement said.

HIV can lead to AIDS, or the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, and hepatitis refers to a group of viral infections that affect the liver, according to the CDC.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2580028/New-York-hospital-warns-thousands-exposed-HIV-hepatitis-reused-insulin-pens.html#ixzz2vru6efmB 
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