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Ciuffa et al,¹ in moving from the article by Cody et al,² pose the problem of the management of health care workers (HCWs) with blood-borne infections. The risk of transmission of blood-borne pathogens from worker to patient is one of the most controversial topics in occupational medicine. A number of organizations have proposed guidelines,^3-7 most of which are advisory in nature, and their enforcement is generally poor owing to practical difficulties in defining the authority who can effectively manage the problem.

For example, in Italy it has been proposed that those HCWs who directly perform invasive procedures should undergo serological testing and evaluation of markers of viral infection.⁸ However, the Italian law (Workers' Statute) prevents employers from verifying the health of their employees, and the Constitution states that nobody can be subjected to medical examination without consent; special guarantees are foreseen for human immunodeficiency virus–infected individuals. In Europe, according to . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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