Infective agents in fixed human cadavers: A brief review and suggested guidelines

• Published in: The Anatomical record 2002-08, Vol.269 (4), p.194-197
• Main Authors: Demiryürek, Deniz, Bayramoǧlu, Alp, Ustaçelebi, Şemsettin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: AIDS; Anatomy - standards; Cadaver; cadaver dissection; CJD; Creutzfeldt‐Jakob Disease; Dissection - adverse effects; Dissection - methods; education; Fixatives - standards; gross anatomy; Guidelines as Topic; hepatitis; HIV; Humans; infection; Infection - microbiology; Infection - physiopathology; Infection Control - standards; medical curriculum; mycobacterium tuberculosis; Occupational Diseases - microbiology; Occupational Diseases - prevention & control; prion; spongiform encephalopathy
• ISSN: 0003-276X; 1097-0185
• DOI: 10.1002/ar.10143

Cadavers remain a principal teaching tool for anatomists and medical educators teaching gross anatomy. Infectious pathogens in cadavers that present particular risks include Mycobacterium tuberculosis, hepatitis B and C, the AIDS virus HIV, and prions that cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathies such as Creutzfeldt‐Jakob disease (CJD) and Gerstmann‐Straussler‐Scheinker syndrome (GSS). It is often claimed that fixatives are effective in inactivation of these agents. Unfortunately cadavers, even though they are fixed, may still pose infection hazards to those who handle them. Specific safety precautions are necessary to avoid accidental disease transmission from cadavers before and during dissection and to decontaminate the local environment afterward. In this brief review, we describe the infectious pathogens that can be detected in cadavers and suggest safety guidelines for the protection of all who handle cadavers against infectious hazards. Anat Rec (New Anat) 269:194–197, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.