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Reference.org
Blood-borne disease
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<p>A blood-borne disease is a <a href="/facts/Disease/55eeQlGL">disease</a> that can be spread through contamination by <a href="/facts/Blood/03zEulkj">blood</a> and other <a href="/facts/Body_fluid/RkAXIBVN">body fluids</a>. Blood can contain <a href="/facts/Pathogen/axMXtV1M">pathogens</a> of various types, chief among which are <a href="/facts/Microorganism/pysJYcE2">microorganisms</a>, like <a href="/facts/Bacteria/wC8xSCsU">bacteria</a> and <a href="/facts/Human_parasite/erYXeVvH">parasites</a>, and non-living infectious agents such as <a href="/facts/Virus/mf88Bcbl">viruses</a>. Three blood-borne pathogens in particular, all viruses, are cited as of primary concern to health workers by the CDC-NIOSH: <a href="/facts/Human_immunodeficiency_virus/ulY2rgzu">human immunodeficiency virus</a>, <a href="/facts/Hepatitis_B/qqPTEY3p">hepatitis B</a>, and <a href="/facts/Hepatitis_C/kwb7IIht">hepatitis C</a>. </p><p>Diseases that are not usually transmitted directly by blood contact, but rather by insect or other vector, are more usefully classified as <a href="/facts/Vector_(epidemiology)/bepASE2M">vector-borne disease</a>, even though the causative agent can be found in blood. Vector-borne diseases include <a href="/facts/West_Nile_virus/BU0j4uux">West Nile virus</a>, <a href="/facts/Zika_fever/pAzS9rpw">zika fever</a> and <a href="/facts/Malaria/rN3g58CX">malaria</a>. </p><p>Many blood-borne diseases can also be contracted by other means, including high-risk sexual behavior or intravenous <a href="/facts/Drug_injection/yuvAyTho">drug use</a>. These diseases have also been identified in <a href="/facts/Sports_medicine/8Nb9klu6">sports medicine</a>. </p><p>Since it is difficult to determine what pathogens any given sample of blood contains, and some blood-borne diseases are lethal, standard medical practice regards all blood (and any body fluid) as potentially infectious. "Blood and body fluid precautions" are a type of <a href="/facts/Infection_control/BCsfKPUl">infection control</a> practice that seeks to minimize this sort of disease transmission. </p>