The athletes are at risk of blood borne infections arising through bleeding injuries or injection of drugs with contaminated syringes. Prevention should focus on reducing non-sport associated risky behaviour, as well as dealing appropriately with bleeding injuries. Bloodborne infections are all major health problems.
The risk of transmission is particularly high in athletes in contact and collision sports, those who live in or travel to endemic regions, injecting drug abusers, and those who practice first aid when there is no healthcare practitioner available. The blood-borne pathogens of greatest concern for potential transmission during sporting competition include human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV). The epidemiology of these pathogens in sport, prevention of blood borne infection in sport, and the screening and management of such…
