Six former Stokes patients have hepatitis C

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Six former Stokes patients have hepatitis C

Tuesday, January 01, 2008 By Ken KolkerThe Grand Rapids Press

GRAND RAPIDS -- The results of blood tests are trickling in for former patients of Dr. Stokes, the disgraced dermatologist whose medical practices allegedly posed a risk for the spread of communicable diseases.

So far, six former patients have tested positive for hepatitis C, state health officials said. The officials say in terms of percentages, the overall results have been encouraging, though it still is too early to draw conclusions.

Officials have received test results for 710 of the doctor's 13,000 or so patients in Kent and Montcalm counties. Many have yet to be tested.

The six who tested positive for hepatitis C represent fewer than 1 percent of those tested. Hepatitis C is a blood-borne disease that can lead to liver failure and death, state health officials said.

The figure is below the rate of 1.6 percent in the typical population, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

Health officials said they have no way of determining whether the patients contracted the disease from Stokes, who allegedly reused medical equipment meant for one-time use, including syringes and sutures.

Stokes, 56, of East Grand Rapids, was sentenced Thursday to 10 1/2 years in federal prison for a $1.9 million insurance fraud that was unrelated to his allegedly unsanitary medical practices. He refused to comment Monday.

"What you're seeing is nothing out of the ordinary," state Community Health Department spokesman McCurtis said. "Because six people came back positive, it doesn't mean they got it from Dr. Stokes. They could have had it before, or they could have contracted it after.

"Sometimes people already have hepatitis C, and many don't know they have it. You can't just pinpoint it on Dr. Stokes."

None of the patients tested positive for hepatitis B or HIV, he said.

Kent County health officials are sending out letters to 8,500 of Stokes' former patients -- in addition to the 5,000 already notified -- suggesting they consider tests for blood-borne diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C, though they've said the risk is low.

McCurtis said he hopes several thousand will seek testing through their county health department. "We're offering people the peace of mind, giving them some closure in this whole thing," he said.

U.S. District Court Judge Gordon Quist, who sentenced Stokes, raised questions about the health threat http://www.mlive.com:80/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-39/119919630978250.xml & coll=6