RFU.com<\/a> where advice on this type of issue can be sought on a confidential basis. We also provide guidance on blood borne viruses to rugby club first aiders through our first aid courses.<\/p>\nIn general the advice to an individual would be:<\/p>\n
1. Take advice in the first instance from their specialist.<\/p>\n
2. If possible, to inform their club first aider, therapist and\/or doctor, so that they can ensure that the appropriate infection control measures are adhered to. They will be bound by the principles of medical confidentiality.<\/p>\n
3. Take the responsibility to strictly comply with the regulations on blood injuries and also, not share towels, shaving razors, flannels, or drink containers with other players.<\/p>\n
Guidance on the risk and management of blood borne viruses in rugby has been provided to us on a general basis through the Health Protection Agency. Their advice has been;<\/p>\n
\u2022 Based on scientific evidence to date, the risk of blood borne virus (BBV) transmission through\u00a0 participation in sport is extremely low. Transmission outside sport is much more common.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Not all persons infected with the virus, are infectious. There is currently therefore, no public health \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 basis for excluding a person from participation in any sport because of BBV infection. Participation should be determined by the athlete’s physician after medical evaluation of the seriousness of the illness.<\/p>\n
\u2022 There is no medical or public health justification for routine BBV testing of participants in any sports activity.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Adopting routine precautions to prevent the spread of infection is very effective. Consistent with routine, sound public health practice, all sports teams should employ universal precautions when providing first-aid or when cleaning-up blood or body fluids visibly contaminated with blood.<\/p>\n
The IRB Laws and guidance to referees on the management of blood injuries form part of the risk reduction if there is a blood injury:<\/p>\n
\u2022 All contaminated clothing and equipment must be replaced prior to the player being allowed to resume play.<\/p>\n
\u2022 If bleeding should recur or come through a dressing, the player should be removed from the field of play for the dressings to be changed.<\/p>\n
\u2022 If bleeding cannot be controlled and the wound securely covered, the player must not continue in the game.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
My CD4 count still remains low but viral load is undetectable. I know that the governing RFU rules state that any player must leave the pitch for attention due to any cuts\/blood etc and would I need to disclose my status? Also would playing a contact sport lower my CD4 count further? Surely it is good for exercise\/mental health\/well being?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3074","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all-topics","category-cd4-and-viral-load"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3074","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3074"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3074\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/i-base.info\/qa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}