VA: 3 exposed to equipment have HIV
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - Three patients exposed to contaminated medical equipment at Veterans Affairs hospitals have tested positive for HIV, the agency said yesterday.
Initial tests show one patient each from VA medical facilities in Murfreesboro, Tenn.; Augusta, Ga.; and Miami has the virus that causes AIDS, according to a VA statement.
The three cases included one positive HIV test reported earlier this month, but the VA didn't identify the facility involved at the time.
The patients are among more than 10,000 being tested because they were treated with endoscopic equipment that wasn't properly sterilized and exposed them to other people's body fluids.
The VA also said there have been six positive tests for the hepatitis B virus and 19 for hepatitis C at the three locations.
There's no way to prove patients were exposed to the viruses at VA facilities, the agency said.
The VA has said it does not yet know whether veterans treated with the same kind of equipment at its other hospitals may have been exposed by the same mistake before the agency had its safety training campaign. 