CDC Investigation to Determine Whether Infections Stemmed From VA Hospital's Dental Clinic

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will soon reveal whether three veterans contracted hepatitis due to infection control lapses at the Dayton (Ohio) VA Medical Center's dental clinic, according to a Dayton Daily News report.

Last year, the VA medical center publicly disclosed that dentist Dwight Pemberton, DDS, violated infection control policies, including proper cleaning of tools and equipment. The internal probe led to testing more than 500 veterans for bloodborne infection, such as HIV and hepatitis.

 



Dr. Pemberton, who is now retired, has denied the accusations. But a team of CDC investigators are currently conducting "ultra-deep sequencing" to prove whether or not three positive cases of hepatitis can be linked back to the hospital's dental clinic, according to the report. The CDC's analysis is expected to be complete within the next few weeks.

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