An Arkansas dentist may have contaminated 100 of his patients with “infectious material,†reports the Arkansas Department of Health. (Credit: Getty Images)
An Arkansas dentist may have contaminated 100 of his patients with “infectious material,†prompting the state health department to contact them and recommend blood tests.
Patients of Dr. William Jarrod Stewart who received intravenous medication between Nov. 20, 2011, and Feb. 20, 2012, are at risk of  exposure to unspecified infectious material, according to the Arkansas Department of Public Health.
Stewart, who worked at several Ocean Dental clinics in the state, died on Feb 29, 2012 — nine days after the 90-day time frame ended.
“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,†Ocean Dental said in a statement.
It’s also not clear how Stewart, who was 40,  died.
Stewart worked in six dental clinics in the state: Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Hot Springs, Jonesboro and Little Rock, and at Bevans Pediatric Dentistry, according to the health department. Only patients at the Fort Smith clinic were not at risk, according to the health department.
The public health scare comes less than two weeks after an Oklahoma dentist was accused of exposing 7,000 of his patients to HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
ABC News’  Katie Moisse contributed reporting.Â
