Infection Control Guidelines

We thank the Department of Health and Ageing for providing a link to the excerpt on Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease which has been extracted from the "Infection Control Guidelines for the prevention of transmission of infectious diseases in the health care setting (CDNA Jan 04)".

For the last four years these guidelines have been extensively revised by the communicable Diseases Network of Australia (CDNA) and the NHMRC special Expert Committee on Tranmissible spongiform Encephalopathies. Revised guidelines were endorsed at the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Committee in January 2004 and were published by the Department of Health and Ageing in June 2004.

Introduction and Contents:
http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/icg-guidelines-index.htm

Direct link to CJD Infection Control Guidlines, Section 31 - Download the Document here

Note:
31.18 refers to "low risk" people (this includes recipients of human pituitary hormones) should be excluded from the routine donation of organs and tissues. This has since changed and recipients of hPH can register as donors for organs only. (See section Blood and Organ Donation).

The "Infection Control Guidelines" are a living document and will be updated from time to time. The department of Health and Ageing is currentlly establishing a working group to review the CJD components of the ICG's. Recent developments/events indicate an update is now necessary. It is anticipated that the updated text will be ready for endorsement mid 2005 by CDNA.

Recipients of human Pituitary Hormones please note:
If you are experiencing any problems accessing health care in relation to Infection Control Guidelines could you please advise a representative of CJD Support Group Network. As a "low risk" patient the new ICG's mainly recommend that recipients should be treated with routine precautions unless high-infectivity tissue is involved. This includes brain, spinal cord, retina, optic nerve or pituitary and in denistry maxillofacial surgery and endodontic procedures.

There is now more screening, questions asking if you have received hPH, and in some cases the recommendations of the ICG's are not implemented by health care workers. CJD Support Group Network can work with the Department of Health and Ageing together with medical and dental experts to assist you. It is beneficial for us to be aware of any problems being experienced so that long term resolutions can be introduced. If we can assist you with a problem today this will go a long way in assisting others who may have problems in the future.

List of hospitals that provide Neurosurgery Opthalmology and Dental Services:
www.health.gov.au/pubhlth/strateg/phi/pdf/2003_hosp_contactlist.pdf