From PubMed (NIH website for medical research):
>>Outbreak of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever in Quetta, Pakistan: contact tracing and risk assessment.
Altaf A, Luby S, Ahmed AJ, Zaidi N, Khan AJ, Mirza S, McCormick J, Fisher-Hoch S.
Department of Community Health Sciences, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.
In December 1994 in a private hospital in Quetta, Pakistan, 3 health-workers contracted
Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) after surgery on a bleeding patient who later died. We
conducted a retrospective study to determine transmission risks among contacts. Fifty contacts gave
blood for antibody tests and answered questions about exposure. Two of four people exposed
percutaneously and one of five with cutaneous exposure contracted CCHE The person with
cutaneous exposure was a surgeon who tore his glove during surgery and noted blood on his hand
but no cut. There were no anti-CCHF antibodies or CCHF cases among persons whose skin came
into contact with body fluids other than blood (0/4), who had skin-to-skin contact (0/16) with patients
or were physically close to them (0/21). Three index case relatives reported that although 10 family
members had cutaneous exposure, none developed CCHF. The family refused blood tests. CCHF
transmission in resource-constrained settings can be limited by focusing on avoiding health worker
contact with blood.<<
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9855399&dopt=Abstract
In plain English, in this study, nobody got Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever from contact with bodily fluids other than blood, from skin to skin contact, or from living in the same household.
I find this reassuring. |
