FDA warns healthcare providers to conserve blood culture media bottles amid shortage

Editor's Note

Healthcare providers should consider strategies to conserve BD BACTEC blood culture media bottles for patients at highest risk due to an ongoing shortage, according to a July 10 report from The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Attributing the shortage to supplier issues, FDA warns that the disruption could impact patient diagnosis, follow-up management, and antimicrobial stewardship. Specific recommendations include:

• Performing blood culture collections when medically necessary, following clinical guidelines.
• Prioritizing use for patients with clinical signs and symptoms of a bloodstream infection.
• Performing routine disinfection of skin protocols prior to collection to minimize the risk of contamination of the blood culture.
• Ensuring proper blood volume collection to avoid a need to recollect additional samples.
• Utilizing safe blood collection and transfer devices to minimize the risk of damage to blood culture media bottles.

The full report offers additional detail and context, as well as links to clinical guidelines and other helpful resources for providers.