7,000 Exposed To HIV And Hepatitis At A Dentist Office, Who Allegedly Uses Bad Health Practices, Including Not Replacing Dirty Equipment

A dentist office in Oklahoma might have exposed 7,000 to HIV and hepatitis.

The Associated Press (AP) reported Friday that the office in Tulsa, Okla. concealed with what health inspectors said was rusty instruments used on patients with infectious diseases and a pattern of unsanitary practices that put thousands of people at risk for hepatitis and the virus that causes AIDS.

"The office looked clean," Joyce Baylor, who had a tooth pulled at Harrington's Tulsa office 1½ years ago told the AP. Baylor, 69, said she'll be tested next week to determine whether she contracted any infection.

Dr. W. Scott Harrington was the oral surgeon at the dentist office that appeared cleaned to Baylor.

"I'm sure he's not suffering financially that he can't afford instruments," Baylor said of Harrington.

State and local health officials planned to mail notices urging 7,000 patients of Dr. W. Scott Harrington to seek medical screenings for hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV. Inspectors allege workers at his two clinics used dirty equipment and risked cross-contamination to the point that the state Dentistry Board branded Harrington a "menace to the public health."

The decision to examine the health practices of Harrington and his office took place after one of his patients was discovered to have HIV and hepatitis C. After determining the patient had a dental procedure about the likely time of exposure, investigators visited Harrington's office and found a number of unsafe practices, state epidemiologist Kristy Bradley told the AP.

"I want to stress that this is not an outbreak. The investigation is still very much in its early stages," Bradley said because it is not determined how long these practices have been going on.

Harrington voluntarily gave up his license, closed his offices in Tulsa and suburban Owasso, and is cooperating with investigators, said Kaitlin Snider, a spokeswoman for the Tulsa Health Department. He faces a hearing April 19, when his license could be permanently revoked.

A 17-count complaint against Harrington, saying he was a "menace to the public health by reasons of practicing dentistry in an unsafe or unsanitary manner," was filed by the Oklahoma Dentistry Board.

"The CDC (Center For Disease Control and Prevention) has determined that rusted instruments are porous and cannot be properly sterilized," the board said.