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Blood and body fluid precautions are recommendations designed to prevent the transmission of HIV,hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and other diseases while administering first aid or other health care that includes contact with body fluids or blood. These precautions treat all blood and body fluids as potentially infectious for diseases that are transmitted in the blood. The organisms spreading these diseases are called blood-borne pathogens. Blood and body fluid precautions apply to blood and other body fluids that contain visible traces of blood, semen, and vaginal fluids. They also apply to tissues and other body fluids, such as from around the brain or spinal cord (cerebrospinal fluid), around a joint space (synovial fluid), in the lungs (pleural fluid), in the lining of the abdomen and pelvis (peritoneal fluid), around the heart (pericardial fluid), and amniotic fluidthat surrounds a fetus.
How can you reduce your risk of exposure to blood and body fluids?
Blood and body fluid precautions involve the use of protective barriers such as gloves, gowns, masks, and eye protection. These reduce the risk of exposing the skin or mucous membranes to potentially infectious fluids. Health care workers should always use protective barriers to protect themselves from exposure to another person's blood or body fluids. Gloves protect you whenever you touch blood; body fluids; mucous membranes; or broken, burned, or scraped skin. The use of gloves also decreases the risk of disease transmission if you are pricked with a needle. o Always wear gloves for handling items or surfaces soiled with blood or body fluids.
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Wear gloves if you have scraped, cut, or chapped skin on your hands. Change your gloves after each use. Wash your hands immediately after removing your gloves. Wash your hands and other skin surfaces immediately after they come in contact with blood or body fluids.
Masks and protective eyewear, such as goggles or a face shield, help protect your eyes, mouth, and nose from droplets of blood and other body fluids. Always wear a mask and protective eyewear if you are doing a procedure that may expose you to splashes or sprays of blood or body fluids.
Gowns or aprons protect you from splashes of blood or body fluids. Always wear a gown or apron if you are doing a procedure that may expose you to splashes or sprays of blood or body fluids.
Have a disposable face shield or pocket mask available if you think you might be required to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, which is part of CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation). Avoid touching objects that may be contaminated.