Stethoscopes as potential intrahospital carriers of pathogenic microorganisms

Stethoscopes can take part in the transmission of health care-associated infections. We cultured 112 stethoscopes by direct imprint on blood agar to estimate the prevalence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms. Forty-eight (47%) produced 50 potentially pathogenic microorganisms; from these, 43 (...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of infection control Vol. 42; no. 1; pp. 82 - 83
Main Authors: Campos-Murguía, Alejandro, León-Lara, Ximena, Muñoz, Juan M., Macías, Alejandro E., Álvarez, José A.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: New York, NY Mosby, Inc 01.01.2014
Elsevier
Mosby-Year Book, Inc
Subjects:
Bacteria - isolation & purification
Biological and medical sciences
Blood
Contamination
Cross-Sectional Studies
Disease transmission
Disinfection
Epidemiology. Vaccinations
Fomites
General aspects
Humans
Infection Control - methods
Infectious Disease
Infectious diseases
Medical sciences
Pilot Projects
Prevalence
Staphylococcus infections
Stethoscopes - microbiology
Disinfection
Fomites
Contamination
Prevention
Infection
Stethoscope
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ISSN:0196-6553, 1527-3296, 1527-3296
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Stethoscopes can take part in the transmission of health care-associated infections. We cultured 112 stethoscopes by direct imprint on blood agar to estimate the prevalence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms. Forty-eight (47%) produced 50 potentially pathogenic microorganisms; from these, 43 (86%) were Staphylococcus aureus, of which 18 (42%) were methicillin-resistant S. aureus. We concluded that stethoscopes should be considered as potential fomites and must be disinfected routinely before and after each patient contact.
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ISSN:0196-6553
1527-3296
1527-3296
DOI:10.1016/j.ajic.2013.06.015