Patients catch hepatitis C from anesthetist

Local health authority officials in Bavaria on Monday said at least 12 people had been infected with hepatitis C after undergoing surgery in a German clinic, although the figure could rise.

All of the former patients are believed to have contracted the infection from an anesthetist, who had the disease himself.

The operations took place at the at the Donau-Ries clinic, in the southern German town of Donauwörth.

The doctor — who no longer works at the hospital — was addicted to medication, according to the health authority. Because the hepatitis C virus is transmitted through blood-to-blood contact, it remains unclear if the disease was spread through negligence or intentionally.

According to the public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk, prosecutors were investigating on suspicion of bodily harm.

Mass screening of former patients

Hundreds of former patients have been asked to have themselves tested for the disease at their general practitioners, the DPA news agency reported. The total number of people who have contracted the disease not expected to be known until late next week.

Read more: Hepatitis - the facts from A to E

The anesthetist was involved in some 700 operations. Officials said they were also checking records from thousands of other operations where he might have acted as relief for other anesthetists.

The first case came to light last week, when it emerged that five people had the disease. Until then, the anesthetist had briefly been working at another set of clinics in the Ostalb district of the neighboring state of Baden Württemberg.

Hepatitis C is usually symptomless during its initial stages, but it can become chronic and cause liver disease, liver cancer and cirrhosis over time.  Approximately 95 percent of chronic cases clear with treatment.

rc/aw (dpa, AFP)