Needlestick Injuries Among Medical and Dental Students at the University of Kerman. A Questionnaire Study

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of needlestick injury (NSI) and the factors associated with it among medical and dental students in Kerman province during the 2006 year.Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 269 medical and dental students to evaluate NSIs and practices regarding the protective strategies. These students were asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire. The data were ana-lyzed by t-test and chi-square test.Results: The questionnaires were completed by 245 students, of which 74.3% (182) had NSIs. The highest incidence among medical students was found to be in surgery ward and the emergency room, followed by Orthopedics and Internal medicine wards,whilst the highest incidence among the dental students was seen in Endodontics, Surgery, and Perio-dontics Departments.Conclusion: Medical and dental students were found at a high risk of NSIs and blood–borne infections during their clinical activities. Therefore, some preventive measures seem necessary to be taken into consideration