Persistent Contamination of Heater-Cooler Units for Extracorporal Circulation Cured by Chlorhexidine-Alcohol in Water Tanks

Publication date: Available online 11 January 2018 Source:Journal of Hospital Infection Author(s): Sara Romano-Bertrand, Marine Evrevin, Chloé Dupont, Jean-Marc Frapier, Jean-Claude Sinquet, Elodie Bousquet, Bernard Albat, Estelle Jumas-Bilak Recently, surgical site infections due to non-tuberculous Mycobacterium (NTM) have been linked to heater-cooler units (HCUs) contamination. ECDC and manufacturers now recommend the use of hydrogen peroxide in filtered water to fill HCU tanks. After implementation of these measures in our hospital, HCUs became heavily contaminated by opportunistic waterborne pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. No NTM were detected but fast-growing resistant bacteria could impair their detection. The efficiency of hydrogen peroxide and chlorhexidine-alcohol was compared in situ. Chlorhexidine-alcohol treatment stopped waterborne pathogens contamination and NTM were not cultured whilst their detection efficiency was probably improved.
Source: Journal of Hospital Infection - Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research