‘Rogue Dentist’ HIV Scare In Tulsa Affects Thousands

A “rogue dentist” may have infected at least one patient with HIV, authorities say, and a subsequent investigation revealed that in-office practices may have put many others at risk of infection.

The rogue dentist HIV scare began when a patient tested positive for both HIV and Hepatitis C in the absence of all other risk factors aside from receiving dental treatment. The infected patient had been treated by Dr. Wayne Harrington, an oral surgeon with a practice in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

After the HIV case was discovered, the Oklahoma Board Of Dentistry conducted an investigation, and made an unannounced visit to Harrington’s practice on March 18 — allegedly uncovering the use of rusty implements, medications that expired as far back as 1993, and instances of unlicensed workers dosing and administering medications to patients during the inspection.

State health officials say the rogue dentist HIV issue is a bit more of a concern given a high number of patients enrolled in Medicaid, and thusly having higher rates of HIV infection in general.

Susan Rogers, executive director of the state Board of Dentistry in Oklahoma, explains that dental transmission of HIV and other blood-borne pathogens is rare, and says:

‘‘This is an unprecedented even. To my knowledge, this has never happened before as far as a public notification of a (hepatitis C) case involving a dental office.”

Kaitlin Snider, a spokeswoman for the Tulsa Health Department, said that finding and locating all patients that may have been exposed to the unsafe practices alleged in Harrington’s office will be a challenge, due to the fact the potential risk was only recently discovered:

‘‘It’s uncertain how long those practices have been in place … He’s been practicing for 36 years.”

The board accused the rogue dentist suspected in the possible HIV infection of ‘‘being a menace to the public health by reasons of practicing dentistry in an unsafe or unsanitary manner.”