Background: needle-free connectors are widely used in clinical practice. The aim of this study was to identify any differences between microbial ingress into six different connectors (three neutral-displacement, one negative-displacement and two anti-reflux connectors).
Methods: each connector underwent a 7-day clinical simulation involving repeated microbial contamination of the connector's injection ports with Staphylococcus aureus followed by decontamination and then saline flushes through each connector. The simulation was designed to be a surrogate marker for the potential risk of contamination in clinical practice.
Results: increasing numbers of S. aureus were detected in the flushes over the 7 days of sampling despite adherence to a rigorous decontamination programme. Significant differences in the number of S. aureus recovered from the saline flush of some types of connectors were also detected. Two different durations (5- and 15-second) of decontamination of the injection ports with 70% isopropyl alcohol (IPA) wipes were also investigated. There was no significant difference between the median number of S. aureus recovered in the saline flushes following a 5-second (165.5, 95% CI=93-260) or a 15-second decontamination regimen (75, 10-190).
Conclusions: The findings suggest that there may be differences in the risk of internal microbial contamination with different types of connectors and that even 15 seconds of decontamination may not fully eradicate microorganisms from the injection ports of some devices.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.12968/bjon.2018.27.2.S18 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Microbial fuel cells to monitor natural attenuation around groundwater plumes.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int
January 2025
School of Natural and Built Environment, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT7 1NN, UK.
This research presents a straightforward and economically efficient design for a microbial fuel cell (MFC) that can be conveniently integrated into a borehole to monitor natural attenuation in groundwater. The design employs conventional, transparent, and reusable PVC bailers with graphite tape and granular activated carbon to create high surface area electrodes. These electrodes are connected across redox environments in nested boreholes through a wire and variable resistor setup.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMicrobial volatile organic compounds measured in the air of a waste sorting plant and a university by thermal desorption-gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.
Environ Monit Assess
January 2025
Institut de Recherche Robert-Sauvé en Santé Et en Sécurité du Travail (IRSST), Montréal, Québec, Canada.
In recyclable waste management facilities, several contaminants, mainly bioaerosols and microorganisms, can be released and cause potential adverse health effects. Given that microbial volatile organic compounds (mVOCs) are metabolites developed by molds and since they can be considered as potential biomarkers of mold exposure, their concentrations in ambient air were monitored at a recyclable waste sorting plant (WSP) and a university campus (UC) serving as control environment for comparison. A recently developed analytical method was used for the detection of 21 selected mVOCs in real conditions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSpatio-temporal variation of microbial indicators of river water and treatment efficiencies of drinking water treatment plants along the upper Mahaweli River segment of Sri Lanka.
Environ Pollut
January 2025
University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya 20400, Sri Lanka. Electronic address:
The microbial pollution status of river surface water is important to ensure a river-based quality drinking water supply for the public. The present study aimed to investigate bacterial contamination status in the upper Mahaweli River, the main drinking water supplier to the hill country of Sri Lanka. Both the raw surface water and treated water, taken at 14 drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) along the river segment of 60 km between Kotmale and Victoria reservoirs, were tested for total bacterial counts (TBC), total coliform counts (TCC) and faecal coliform counts (FCC).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInorganic bioelectric system for nitrate removal with low NO production at cold temperatures of 4 and 10 °C.
Water Res
December 2024
Department of Environmental and Resource Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Bygningstorvet, Bygning 115, 2800 Kgs, Lyngby, Denmark. Electronic address:
Groundwater, essential for ecological stability and freshwater supply, faces escalating nitrate contamination. Traditional biological methods struggle with organic carbon scarcity and low temperatures, leading to an urgent need to explore efficient approaches for groundwater remediation. In this work, we proposed an inorganic bioelectric system designed to confront these challenges.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAdsorption behaviors of microplastics from packaging materials subjected to ultraviolet irradiation and microbial colonization.
Mar Pollut Bull
January 2025
Stockbridge School of Agriculture, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA.
Microplastics (MPs) in nature inevitably undergo various aging processes and may exhibit varied interfacial interactions with the coexisted contaminants. Here several discarded disposable polyethylene and polypropylene plastic packaging materials were collected and employed as the raw materials of MPs, and the effects of stimulated UV irradiation and microbial colonization on the variations of surface physicochemical characteristics, including biofilm content, oxygen-containing functional groups, oxygen/carbon ratio, hydrophilicity and surface charge properties were explored. Simultaneously, the adsorption behavior of each MPs on the representative cationic dye crystal violet (CV), as well as the influences of salinity and pH of CV solution, was investigated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!