The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is investigating whether there's a link between a patient's positive HIV test and unsterilized colonoscopy equipment that may have exposed thousands of veterans to infectious diseases, according to a story reported Tuesday by the Associated Press (AP).
The positive test was the first reported in an ongoing investigation of thousands of patients who underwent optical colonoscopy at centers in Murfreesboro, TN, and Miami. The unsterilized endoscopic equipment was also used at an ear, nose, and throat facility in Augusta, GA, the AP story stated.
As reported March 26 on AuntMinnie.com, the VA centers had failed to properly sterilize the equipment between treatments -- maintaining the faulty sterilization procedures for as long as five years. The problem was corrected at all centers by March 14, according to the agency.
The VA has previously reported positive hepatitis results in 16 patients, including five with hepatitis B and 11 with hepatitis C, but cautioned that there was no way to prove that the patients contracted the disease because of treatment at its facilities. Nor will the agency be able to prove that the HIV infection resulted from an endoscopic examination at a VA center.
In addition, an attorney for a patient with espoghageal cancer said the patient died from a "massive infection" soon after getting a colonoscopy. Medical records are being reviewed for any connection between the infection and exposure, the AP reported today.
In response to the potential exposures, the VA in Miami continues to staff a call center it set up to answer patients' questions. Operators are available at 305-575-7256 or 877-575-7256 and can be reached seven days a week, 24 hours a day.
Related Reading
Dirty colonoscopes spark inquiry at VA hospitals, March 26, 2009
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