Sharps injuries are common among Mohs surgeons, survey finds

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All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, copied, or otherwise reproduced or distributed without the prior written permission of Frontline Medical Communications Inc.</copyrightNotice> </rightsInfo> </provider> <abstract/> <metaDescription>More than half of Mohs surgeons report at least one sharps injury in the past year, mostly self-inflicted, survey finds</metaDescription> <articlePDF/> <teaserImage/> <teaser>In the past year, 56.7% of respondents experienced at least one sharps injury.</teaser> <title>Sharps injuries are common among Mohs surgeons, survey finds</title> <deck/> <disclaimer/> <AuthorList/> <articleURL/> <doi/> <pubMedID/> <publishXMLStatus/> <publishXMLVersion>1</publishXMLVersion> <useEISSN>0</useEISSN> <urgency/> <pubPubdateYear/> <pubPubdateMonth/> <pubPubdateDay/> <pubVolume/> <pubNumber/> <wireChannels/> <primaryCMSID/> <CMSIDs/> <keywords/> <seeAlsos/> <publications_g> <publicationData> <publicationCode>skin</publicationCode> <pubIssueName/> <pubArticleType/> <pubTopics/> <pubCategories/> <pubSections/> </publicationData> </publications_g> <publications> <term canonical="true">13</term> </publications> <sections> <term canonical="true">39313</term> <term>27970</term> </sections> <topics> <term canonical="true">40695</term> <term>245</term> <term>244</term> </topics> <links/> </header> <itemSet> <newsItem> <itemMeta> <itemRole>Main</itemRole> <itemClass>text</itemClass> <title>Sharps injuries are common among Mohs surgeons, survey finds</title> <deck/> </itemMeta> <itemContent> <h2>TOPLINE:</h2> <p><span class="tag metaDescription">More than half of Mohs surgeons report at least one sharps injury in the past year, mostly self-inflicted, survey finds</span>.</p> <h2>METHODOLOGY:</h2> <ul class="body"> <li>Data on the incidence of sharps injuries among dermatologic surgeons is limited.</li> <li>In a cross-sectional analysis of anonymous survey responses from members of the American College of , researchers aimed to determine the incidence and types of sharps injuries among Mohs surgeons.</li> <li>The researchers used descriptive statistics for continuous and nominal variables (percentage and frequencies) to report survey data and Fisher exact or chi-square analysis of categorical variables to obtain <em>P</em> values.</li> </ul> <h2>TAKEAWAY:</h2> <ul class="body"> <li>Of the 60 survey respondents, more than half (56.7%) were from single-specialty group practices, 26.6% were from academic practices, and fewer than half (43.3%) had been in practice for 15 or more years.</li> <li>In the past year, 56.7% of respondents experienced at least one sharps injury. Of these, 14.7% involved exposure to a blood-borne pathogen, which translated into an annual exposure risk of 7.6% for any given Mohs surgeon.</li> <li>The top two types of sharps injuries were self-inflicted suture needlestick (76.5%) and other types of self-inflicted needlestick injuries (26.5%).</li> <li>Of respondents who sustained a sharps injury, 44.1% did not report them, while 95% of all survey respondents said they had access to postexposure prophylaxis/protocols at their workplace.</li> <li>The researchers determined that the average annual rate of sharps injury was 0.87.</li> </ul> <h2>IN PRACTICE:</h2> <ul class="body"> <li>“In best practices to prevent sharps injuries, the authors recommend that a standardized sharps handling protocol be developed and disseminated for dermatologic surgeons and their staff,” the researchers wrote.</li> </ul> <h2>STUDY DETAILS:</h2> <ul class="body"> <li>Faezeh Talebi-Liasi, MD, and Jesse M. Lewin, MD, department of dermatology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, conducted the research. The study was published in <a href="https://journals.lww.com/dermatologicsurgery/abstract/2023/11000/a_cross_sectional_analysis_of_sharps_injuries.2.aspx">Dermatologic Surgery</a>.</li> </ul> <h2>LIMITATIONS:</h2> <ul class="body"> <li>The study’s cross-sectional observational design and small sample size was skewed toward single-specialty and academic practices.</li> </ul> <h2>DISCLOSURES:</h2> <ul class="body"> <li>The authors reported having no relevant financial disclosures.</li> </ul> <p> <em>A version of this article appeared on </em> <span class="Hyperlink"><a href="https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/998243">Medscape.com</a>.</span> </p> </itemContent> </newsItem> <newsItem> <itemMeta> <itemRole>teaser</itemRole> <itemClass>text</itemClass> <title/> <deck/> </itemMeta> <itemContent> </itemContent> </newsItem> </itemSet></root>