J Hosp Infect 2001 Jul;48(3):228-32
Middlemore Hospital, South Auckland, New Zealand.
Over a three month period there was an outbreak of infection, due to a multi-drug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii in the intensive care burns unit with spread of infection to other patients, both within the unit and elsewhere in the hospital.Microbiological sampling of the environment and of the healthcare workers' (HCWs) hands were carried out. Strain relatedness of the isolates was confirmed by pulsed field gel electrophoresis.Fifteen patients were involved in the outbreak, whose infections were all hospital-acquired. The burns room environment was contaminated with the A. baumannii, as was the door handle of the door leading from the ante-chamber between both rooms. This allowed the hands of HCWs to be contaminated by A. baumannii despite appropriate handwashing procedures prior to leaving the rooms. Two staff members were colonized with A. baumannii. One HCW who was directly involved in patient care was found to be "heavily" colonized, the other, with less patient contact, was only "lightly" colonized. Review of handwashing practices revealed that chlorhexidine/alcohol hand wash solution was not used by the HCW whose hands were heavily colonized.A combination of a review of handwashing practice, education about the spread of bacteria via hands and contaminated environment, and the revision of infection control procedures in the unit contributed to a prompt termination of the outbreak. Copyright 2001 The Hospital Infection Society.
PMID: 11439011, UI: 21332745
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J Hosp Infect 2001 Jul;48(3):186-92
Kettering General Hospital, Rothwell Road, Kettering, Northants NN16 8UZ, UK.
An outbreak of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection affected seven premature infants in a special care baby unit during November and December 1999. Conventional infection control measures (cohorting infected babies, strict reinforcement of the use of gloves and aprons, emphasis on hand disinfection) failed to prevent spread. Palivizumab, a respiratory syncytial virus monoclonal antibody, was given to eight high-risk preterm infants. There were no further cases of RSV in the unit and none of the babies given palivizumab developed RSV. One baby who acquired RSV during the outbreak (and who was not given palivizumab) was subsequently admitted to hospital with another episode of RSV bronchiolitis. The role of palivizumab in the control of hospital outbreaks of RSV infection merits further investigation. Copyright 2001 The Hospital Infection Society.
PMID: 11439005, UI: 21332739
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