100 Ark. dental patients urged to get blood tests

The Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) has begun contacting about 100 patients treated by William Jarrod Stewart, DDS, at six dental clinics around the state who may have been given drugs intravenously that were contaminated by an infectious material.

Currently, no illnesses have been linked to this situation, although the organization has identified a potential for limited disease transmission.

The patients, who are between the ages of 14 and 22, were treated between November 20, 2011, and February 20, 2012 at Ocean Dental offices, where Dr. Stewart was employed. Dr. Stewart passed away on February 29, 2012 at the age of 40.

Information about the contamination was given to the ADH by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. No other providers at the included clinics listed had access to the medications, so no patients seen by other providers at these locations are thought to be at risk, the ADH explained in a press release.

The dental clinics where Dr. Stewart treated patients who fall into the 90-day time frame are Ocean Dental clinics in Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Hot Springs, Jonesboro, and Little Rock and Bevans Pediatric Dentistry in Little Rock. Currently, no patients treated at the Fort Smith clinic have been identified as being at risk.

The ADH is now contacting patients potentially at risk by telephone and letter, and will recommend that patients be screened for infection at an ADH location, free of charge.

At this time, only patients who received IV medicines from Dr. Stewart may be at risk. Those who received local anesthetics or anesthetic gasses are not at risk; patients who received IV medicine prior to November 20, 2011, also are not at risk.

Ocean Dental issued a statement in response to the ADH investigation that reads, in part:

Ocean Dental has been fully cooperating with the Arkansas Department of Health since we were contacted last week. Although Ocean Dental is not aware of any information indicating that Dr. Stewart had any infectious disease, and no reports have been received about any of these patients contracting any infectious disease, the Arkansas Department of Health is recommending that these patients be tested as a precaution. To be clear, no issue has been raised about any other Ocean Dental dentists or employees, or about any other procedures performed or drugs administered at these clinics.

The ADH has set up a hotline, 800-633-1735, and a dedicated email address, [email protected], for individuals seeking additional information.