A YOUNG boy is still having medical treatment because he is at risk of contracting hepatitis B - 12 months after he was stabbed by a used needle on a Lancashire beach.

And today, parents Shaun and Janette Hartley of Lowood Grove, Lea, warned holidaymakers to be careful that their children don't suffer the same fate as son Ryan, 12, who pricked his finger on a used syringe at Lytham.

Sister Sarifa Kabir, of Royal Preston Hospital, said: "He has injections to prevent against further incidents. A blood sample was taken when Ryan came to casualty which we keep as a record to see if he already had hepatitis B. It can take years for the disease to develop. There is still a risk, albeit a small risk."

What started as a happy day trip with Ryan and two of his friends ended for the Hartley family when their son was stabbed by a discarded needle.

Shaun said: "I challenged the boys to see who could dig the biggest hole and they started burying in the sand, the next thing I knew Ryan pulled his finger out and it was bleeding. We dug carefully to see what it was that cut him and found a needle.

"It is a major concern. You don't know where needles have been and even Ryan said that you can get HIV from needles."

The family came back to Preston and Janette rang their doctor who advised them to go to casualty.

Janette, a staff nurse at the Royal Preston Hospital, and student nurse Shaun are aware of the dangers of needle injuries including HIV, hepatitis B and tetanus.

Shaun added: "Ryan was very brave and he is having his final booster for hepatitis B shortly.

"Touch wood I don't think we will encounter any problems, but it was an ordeal."

Sister Kabir, said: "We advise anyone who has a needle injury to make it bleed and to wash it and to come to casualty.

"It is important that we give a hepatitis injection and we will also take a five millilitre blood sample. If a patient needs counselling we can help."