The superbug Clostridium
difficile persists on surgical gowns and surfaces, even after being treated
with the recommended amount of disinfectant, suggests a study from the
University of Plymouth, UK.
In the study published July
12, 2019 in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology,
researchers examined single-use hospital surgical gowns (made of
polypropylene), hospital-grade stainless steel and
floor vinyl that had been infected with with 1
× 106 spores/ml of two types of C. difficile spore preparations: crude spores and
purified spores of C. difficile. These infected gowns were then treated
for 10 minutes with disinfectant containing 1,000 parts per million (ppm) of
chlorine-releasing agent sodium dichloroisocyanurate.
All strains of C. difficile
spores remained viable on the gowns as well as on stainless steel and vinyl
flooring after microbicide exposure at the
recommended disinfection concentration demonstrating ineffectual sporicidal
action. As the number of spores did not increase during contact
time (10 seconds, 30 seconds, 1 minute, 5 minutes, 10 minutes), the transfer of
spores likely occurred within the first 10 seconds.
This new study only adds to
the growing evidence that for all practical purposes, everything used in
healthcare including environmental surfaces can be considered to be
contaminated and a potential source of cross-contamination in hospitals and
transmission of health-care associated infections.
Universal precautions need to
be stringently followed. Single-use items should be disposed of properly and
surfaces should be wiped clean. Hand hygiene and antimicrobial stewardship
activities should be diligently observed. Any variation in cleaning practices
can result in suboptimal spore killing.
Dr KK Aggarwal
Padma Shri Awardee
President Elect Confederation of
Medical Associations in Asia and Oceania
(CMAAO)
Group Editor-in-Chief IJCP Publications
President Heart Care Foundation of
India
Past National President
IMA
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