The Prevalence of Bacterial Contamination in the Ventilator Bellows of Anesthesia Machines
Abstract
The anesthesia breathing circuit has been inconclusively implicated as a source of postoperative, hospital-acquired respiratory infections that follow surgery. Little investigation of the prevalence of bacterial contamination in the anesthesia ventilator bellows has been done. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of bacterial contamination in the ventilator bellows of anesthesia machines. A prospective study of 12 anesthesia machines at a major medical facility was conducted to determine whether ventilator bellows are bacterially contaminated and to quantify and identify any bacterial organisms present. Two sets of samples were collected. Twelve machines were sampled in the morning and 10 machines were sampled in the afternoon after surgery was completed. Using sterile culturette bacterial swabs and aseptic technique, samples were collected by swabbing the internal diameter of the ventilator bellows. All of the morning samples and 80 percent of the afternoon samples were negative for bacterial growth. Two (20 percent) of the afternoon samples had 3 positive growth or greater than 100 colony forming units of Staphylococcus epidermidis indicating external contamination during collection or laboratory processing. From these findings, the ventilator bellows does not appear to harbor pathogenic microorganisms. These data support that the present methodology of cleaning and sterilization of the anesthesia machine at this facility is effective.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1997
- Accession Number
- AD1011749
Entities
People
- Vicki L. Simmons
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences