Anthrax Exposure!

Recently in June the CDC experienced a breach of standard protocol pertaining to Bacillus anthracis, which we all know to be extremely dangerous. 75 employees at the Atlanta headquarters came into contact with the organism outside of a biosafety III Laboratory. All of these employees are being provided with prophylactic antibiotics and monitored continuously to ensure they do not become ill. The breached protocol happened when a Roybal campus biosafety III lab prepared B. anthracis for research in lower biosafety level laboratories. The organism was meant to enter these laboratories inactivated, and be used to detect dangerous pathogens in environmental samples. The samples were not inactivated adequately, and the lower biosafety level laboratories were exposed to the live organism without proper personal protective equipment or means to handle the organism. 

I feel stories like this reiterate safety in the lab. When we receive patient specimens, we do not know the causative agent immediately. We should always take precautions because it may in fact be an extremely dangerous pathogen. All specimens in the clinical setting should be approached with universal precautions. Another important point is following protocols fully. The reason our protocols were created was to protect us, as well as the patient. Any decontamination process should be carried out fully to ensure the organisms present are killed.