Infectious diseases in the operating room.

Patients with infectious diseases have special implications for infection control in the operating room. The increased use and abuse of antibiotics has ushered in a category of resistant organisms. These multiresistant organisms are spread by direct or indirect contact, primarily from the hands of caregivers or contact with contaminated environmental surfaces. Another category of infectious diseases is prions (pronounced pree-ons). Unlike other infectious diseases, human prions diseases are not spread through routine exposures such as direct contact, droplet, and airborne routes. The causative agent is highly resistant to traditional disinfecting and sterilization processes. This article provides an overview of the multiresistant infections of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant enterococci, and Staphylococcus aureus with reduced susceptibility to vancomycin along with the human prions diseases Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, German-Straüssler-Scheinker syndrome, kuru, and fatal familial insomnia. We provide a template of precautions that can be used in developing operating room and anesthesia infection control protocols for this patient population.