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Between July 1990 and June 1996, 284 exposures to infectious material were reported by 247 health care workers (HCWs) at AHEPA University Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece, representing an overall rate of 2.4% reported injuries per 100 HCWs/year. Nurses reported the highest rates of incidents (3.0%) and in all but one working group women exhibited higher injury rates per year than male HCWs. Young workers (21-30 years old) were primarily affected in incidents (P < 0.001). Needles were the most common implement causing injury (60.6%) and resheathing of used needles as well as garbage collection were common causes of injury. None of the HCWs seroconverted in exposures where immune status to blood-borne pathogens was estimated. Efforts by the infection control committee need to be more intense, in order to increase the rate of reported staff injuries. This will facilitate identification of unsafe practices and provide more adequate preventive measures.

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Our aim was to investigate the association between chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) in the Greek population. We studied 120 patients (70 men and 50 women, mean age 59 years) diagnosed with NHL. One hundred and eight had B cell NHL (90%) and 12 had T cell NHL (10%). The presence of anti-HCV antibodies in patients and controls was investigated using the monoclonal enzymatic immunoassay (MEIA) method. The detection of HCV RNA and hepatitis G virus (HGV) RNA in patients with B cell NHL and anti-HCV-positive controls was performed using an RT-PCR technique. Anti-HCV antibodies were present in only 2 of the 108 patients with B cell NHL (1.9%), while the prevalence of HCV infection in the healthy population was 0.6%, and in patients with various solid tumors treated with chemotherapy, it was 0.99%. Ten of the 108 B cell NHL patients (9.26%) were diagnosed as HGV RNA positive, while the prevalence of HGV infection in 285 Greek blood donors was 0.7%. Our findings do not confirm a strong association between HCV infection and B cell NHL for Greek patients. The increased prevalence of HGV infection detected in patients with NHL could imply the potential participation of HGV in the pathogenesis of NHL.

Rickettsia conorii is endemic in Greece, though only a few cases of infection have been published to date. The case of a 58-year-old man from northern Greece with a severe form of Mediterranean spotted fever and rapid neurological deterioration is presented here. The patient received antibiotic treatment with doxycycline, showing immediate clinical and laboratory improvement. Diagnosis was confirmed later, during the second week after disease onset, by detection of elevated titres of IgM and IgG antibodies against R. conorii using an indirect immunofluorescence assay. Case reportA 58-year-old retired and previously healthy man presented himself at a peripheral hospital in northern Greece with a sudden onset of chest pain at rest and headache. Clinical, laboratory and imaging investigation, including electrocardiogram, troponin T test, stress test and echocardiogram, showed no pathological findings; the chest pain receded spontaneously and the patient was released after 2 days. One day later, at home, the patient developed high fever (39 uC) with persisting headache and diffuse myalgia. He received amoxycillin-clavulanic acid orally, and showed only a slight improvement of his symptoms. Additionally, a facial and upper limb maculopapular rash occurred 2 days later, which was considered to be an allergic side effect of the antibiotic therapy. The antibiotics were discontinued and the patient received antihistamines. He still complained of headache, myalgia and subfebrile temperatures. The next day (6 days after disease onset) the patient suddenly developed confusion, for which reason he was transferred to our department immediately. Clinical examination at admission revealed an axillary body temperature of 37?8 uC and a fading diffuse macupapular rash with no signs of lymphadenopathy. Neurological examination of the patient showed confusion, ataxia and dysarthria without neck stiffness or any focal neurological findings. Although a history of tick exposure was denied, a black necrotic scabbed lesion of 5 mm in diameter was found on the patient's left thumb. ). Blood-gas analysis revealed hypoxaemia (pO 2 60 mm Hg, pCO 2 35 mm Hg, pH 7?4). The cerebrospinal fluid showed a slight pleocytosis (12 cells mm 23 , 90 % polymorphonuclear) and an increased level of protein (53 mg dl 21 ). A CT (computed tomography) scan and ultrasound of the abdomen showed mild enlargement of liver and spleen without lymphadenopathy. Chest X-ray, CT scan and magnetic resonance imaging of the head, as well as an encephalogram, were normal.The patient remained haemodynamically stable, but deteriorated neurologically within the first 24 h after admission, in spite of additional intravenous therapy with dexamethasone and mannitol. Due to clinical findings (diffuse macupapular rash, fever, headache, myalgia, inoculation eschar) and laboratory findings (thrombocytopenia, elevated alanine and aspartate aminotransferase) a rickettsial infection was suggested, so antibiotic therapy with doxycycline (200 mg per day, orally) was started on the eighth...