5 Infected with HIV After Hospital Reuses Dirty Needles in China

At least five people have been infected with HIV in Zhejiang after proper sterilization procedures were ignored. 

The incident occured last month at the Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Hangzhou and was first reported to health authorities January 26.

The infection occured when a hospital staff reused needles without disposing them, which allowed the virus to spread from a patient who was already HIV positive. 

This new case comes after incidents where improper medical procedures and lack of oversight have led to HIV infections. 

In 2015, a five-year-old girl was tested positive for the virus after the cause of the infection was traced to a blood transfusion she received during an operation when she was eight months old. 

[Image via Flickr]