Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on July 21 announced the recall by Fujifilm of its ED-530XT duodenoscopes. The recall includes replacement of the ED-530XT forceps elevator mechanism including the o-ring seal, replacement of the distal end cap, and a new operations manual. The FDA cleared the updated…
Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on July 26 issued a new report titled “Antibiotic Use in the United States, 2017: Progress and Opportunities.” The report includes information on the current status of antibiotic use in healthcare settings, highlighting programs and resources to support antibiotic stewardship (ie,…
Editor's Note The LivaNova factory in Munich, Germany, a manufacturer of heater-cooler units used in cardiothoracic surgery, appears to be the source of a global outbreak of Mycobacterium chimaera, this study finds. Researchers matched the DNA of samples taken from 21 infected cardiothoracic surgical patients to samples from heater-cooler units…
Editor's Note Reporting of surgical site infections (SSIs) after pancreatic surgery should distinguish between superficial and organ-space infections, which will require different preventative strategies, this study finds. Results showed that risk factors for superficial and organ-space SSIs after pancreatic surgery differed. Preoperative biliary stenting was an independent risk factor for superficial…
Editor's Note Treating contaminated surgical instruments with alcohol, allowing them to dry, or allowing them to soak in water for extended periods of time increases cleaning difficulty and may contribute to sterilization inefficacy, this study finds. Soaking or spraying instruments with alcohol significantly reduced viable bacterial numbers, but significantly increased…
Editor's Note Leading the Joint Commission’s Top Ten Challenging Standards for accredited ambulatory health care organizations during the past year was infection control standard IC.02.02.01, EP 2: The organization reduces the risk of infections associated with medical equipment, devices, and supplies by performing a high-level disinfection and sterilization. In 2016,…
Editor's Note Despite widespread adoption of contact precautions for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE), there is no strong clinical trial evidence to support the mandated use of these precautions, three noted infection prevention researchers say. Without the support of evidence, policy makers from 2000 to 2010 passed…
Editor's Note In this single institution study, the most common reasons for unplanned return to the OR (uROR) were infection and hemorrhage. However, the researchers found that a large number of cases were incorrectly classified as uROR, when they were instead planned reoperations without adequate documentation. Using uROR as reported…
Are there nursing characteristics such as certification status or educational attainment that impact surgical site infection rates? The answer to questions such as this may provide evidence of modifiable factors that could lessen surgical site infections (SSIs) and thus decrease the financial and emotional impact from these adverse events. The…
Editor's Note Techniques used to clean and sterilize flexible ureteroscopes left behind contamination that included debris, residue, and bacteria, in this study presented June 14 at the 44th Annual Conference of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control. Researchers with Ofstead & Associates (St Paul, Minnesota) sampled 16 ureteroscopes at…