Desai F, Scribante J, Perrie H, Fourtounas M
Department of Anaesthesiology, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
South Afr J Crit Care. 2019 Nov 1;35(2). doi: 10.7196/SAJCC.2019.v35i2.394. eCollection 2019.
The internal surfaces of pulse oximeter probes may be overlooked as hot spots for pathogenic microorganisms in an intensive care unit (ICU), thereby contributing to the high incidence of hospital-acquired infections.
To determine the growth and identification of microorganisms on pulse oximeter probes in the multidisciplinary ICU (MICU) at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital and the burns ICU (BICU) at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, before and after decontamination.
This was a cross-sectional, comparative and contextual study, using purposive sampling. Data were collected from the internal surfaces of 34 pulse oximeter probes in a MICU and BICU. Each pulse oximeter probe was swabbed before and after decontamination. The endemic microorganism profile for the two ICUs was obtained from a laboratory database.
Internal surfaces of 31 (91%; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.76 - 0.98) pulse oximeter probes were contaminated with 9 different pathogenic microorganisms pre decontamination. , and were endemic to both ICUs, and were the most-frequently isolated microorganisms. was the most common microorganism endemic to both ICUs, isolated on the internal surfaces of only 2 pulse oximeter probes. Of the internal surfaces of pulse oximeter probes, 6 (18%; 95% CI 0.07 - 0.35) remained contaminated post decontamination, with a microorganism growth reduction of 80% (p=0.0001).
The internal surfaces of pulse oximeter probes may serve as hot spots for an array of pathogens with the potential to cause infection and outbreaks in ICUs. Decontamination of the internal surfaces of pulse oximeter probes should be emphasised.
This study identifies internal surfaces of pulse oximeter probes as reservoirs for infection in intensive care units (ICUs), particularly in a burns ICU setting, pinpointing one of many sources of hospital-acquired infections within ICU cubicles.The study emphasises the need to clean the internal surfaces of pulse oximeter probes (whether visibly soiled or not) prior to disinfection.
在重症监护病房（ICU）中，脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面可能被忽视，而成为致病微生物的滋生地，从而导致医院获得性感染的高发病率。
确定约翰内斯堡夏洛特·马克西克学术医院多学科重症监护病房（MICU）和克里斯·哈尼·巴拉格瓦纳特学术医院烧伤重症监护病房（BICU）中，脉搏血氧仪探头在去污前后微生物的生长及鉴定情况。
这是一项采用目的抽样法的横断面、对比性和背景性研究。从MICU和BICU的34个脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面收集数据。每个脉搏血氧仪探头在去污前后均进行擦拭取样。两个ICU的地方流行微生物谱从实验室数据库中获取。
31个（91%；95%置信区间（CI）0.76 - 0.98）脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面在去污前被9种不同的致病微生物污染。 、 和 在两个ICU中均为地方流行菌，且是最常分离出的微生物。 是两个ICU中最常见的地方流行菌，仅在2个脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面分离到。脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面在去污后仍有6个（18%；95% CI 0.07 - 0.35）被污染，微生物生长减少了80%（p = 0.0001）。
脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面可能成为一系列病原体的滋生地，有在ICU中引发感染和暴发的潜在风险。应强调对脉搏血氧仪探头内表面进行去污处理。
本研究确定脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面是重症监护病房（ICU），尤其是烧伤ICU环境中的感染源，指出了ICU病房内医院获得性感染的众多来源之一。该研究强调在消毒前需清洁脉搏血氧仪探头的内表面（无论是否有明显污渍）。
