Blood-borne disease

A blood-borne disease is a disease that can be spread through contamination by blood and other body fluids. Blood can carry pathogens of several kinds, chiefly microorganisms such as bacteria and parasites and non-living infectious agents such as viruses. Three viruses are singled out as the main concern for health workers by the CDC and NIOSH: human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis B and hepatitis C. Diseases not usually passed on by direct blood contact but carried by an insect or other vector, among them West Nile virus, Zika fever and malaria, are more usefully classed as vector-borne diseases even though the agent can be found in blood. Many blood-borne diseases can also be contracted by other routes, including high-risk sexual behavior and intravenous drug use. Because the contents of a blood sample are hard to know, standard medical practice treats all blood and body fluid as potentially infectious and applies blood and body fluid precautions.