The log records injuries from contaminated sharps that involve which type of injury?

• A. Thermal burns from hot equipment
• B. Percutaneous injuries from contaminated sharps
• C. Vision loss
• D. Noise-induced hearing loss

Answer: (B)

Injuries from contaminated sharps are percutaneous injuries—these are puncture or skin-penetrating wounds caused by needles or other sharp objects that have been contaminated with biological materials. This is the type of injury the log records when a sharps-related incident involves penetrating the skin. Thermal burns come from hot equipment, not sharp injuries; vision loss and hearing loss are unrelated to needle-stick or cut-from-sharp incidents, so they aren’t the typical results logged for contaminated sharps.