CIH CIH - Certified Industrial Hygienist Biological Hazards and Biosafety Questions and Answers 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which biosafety level (BSL) is required for work with agents that may cause serious or potentially lethal disease for which no vaccine or therapy is available?
- BSL-1
- BSL-2
- BSL-3
- BSL-4 (Correct answer)
Correct answer: BSL-4
BSL-4 is the highest containment level, required for dangerous and exotic agents posing high risk of life-threatening disease with no available vaccine or therapy.
Question 2: What is the primary route of exposure for occupational transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis?
- Ingestion
- Dermal contact
- Inhalation of airborne droplet nuclei (Correct answer)
- Vector-borne transmission
Correct answer: Inhalation of airborne droplet nuclei
M. tuberculosis spreads primarily via inhalation of small airborne droplet nuclei (1–5 µm) that can remain suspended in air for extended periods.
Question 3: Which OSHA standard specifically addresses occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens?
- 29 CFR 1910.132
- 29 CFR 1910.1030 (Correct answer)
- 29 CFR 1910.1200
- 29 CFR 1910.134
Correct answer: 29 CFR 1910.1030
29 CFR 1910.1030 is OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, covering exposure to HIV, HBV, and other bloodborne pathogens in the workplace.
Question 4: What term describes the minimum number of organisms required to cause infection in a host?
- Virulence factor
- Infectious dose (Correct answer)
- Pathogenicity index
- Biological threshold limit value
Correct answer: Infectious dose
Infectious dose is the minimum number of microorganisms needed to establish an infection in a susceptible host.
Question 5: Which type of respirator is recommended as minimum protection when entering a space with suspected Histoplasma capsulatum contamination?
- Surgical mask
- Half-face air-purifying respirator with P100 filters (Correct answer)
- Powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR)
- Supplied-air respirator
Correct answer: Half-face air-purifying respirator with P100 filters
At minimum, a half-face air-purifying respirator with P100 particulate filters is recommended for Histoplasma-contaminated environments to prevent inhalation of fungal spores.
Question 6: What is the recommended post-exposure prophylaxis for a healthcare worker with a needlestick from an HIV-positive source?
- Hepatitis B vaccine booster
- Antiretroviral therapy initiated within 72 hours (Correct answer)
- Tuberculin skin test
- Tetanus immunoglobulin
Correct answer: Antiretroviral therapy initiated within 72 hours
Antiretroviral post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) must be initiated within 72 hours of HIV exposure to be effective in reducing infection risk.
CIH CIH - Certified Industrial Hygienist Biological Hazards and Biosafety Questions and Answers 1
Which biosafety level (BSL) is required for work with agents that may cause serious or potentially lethal disease for which no vaccine or therapy is available?