Universal Precautions, (Obsolete) precautions designed to prevent the transmission of blood-borne diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis B, and other blood-borne pathogens when first aid or health care were provided. Under Universal Precautions, blood and certain body fluids of all patients were considered potentially infectious. Universal Precautions were initially developed in 1987 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States and in 1989 by the Bureau of Communicable Disease Epidemiology in Canada. The precautions included specific recommendations for use of gloves, gowns, masks, and protective eyewear when contact with blood or body secretions containing blood was anticipated. Compare Standard Precautions, Transmission-Based Precautions.
