Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T00:51:54.717Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Contamination of chlorhexidine cream used to prevent ascending urinary tract infections

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 March 2010

A. Salveson  and
T. Bergan
A. Salveson
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology, Aker Hospital, Trondhjemsveien 235, Oslo, 5, Norway
T. Bergan
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology, Aker Hospital, Trondhjemsveien 235, Oslo, 5, Norway
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Chlorhexidine-containing cream is often used as an antimicrobial barrier to ascending urinary tract infection in patients with indwelling urethral catheters. The cream is dispensed in small tubes for personal use but repeated use of a tube still entails a potential infection hazard. The extent of cream contamination was analysed by emulsifying it in 1 % peptone broth with 1 % Tween-80 added as a wetting agent, and culturing quantitatively for bacteria and fungi by membrane filtration. Twenty-three per cent of cream samples and 35 % of swabs taken from outside the tube beneath the screw cap demonstrated microbial contamination. Isolates included potential pathogens such as enterococci, staphylococci, Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, opportunists like Moraxella spp. and diphtheroids, and contaminants such as Bacillus spp., micrococci, and a mould of the genus Cladosporium. Contamination of cream with a particular bacterial strain was found to precede urinary tract infection with the same microbe. We recommend that chlorhexidine cream for this use be dispensed in single dose units to ensure sterility.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Hygiene , Volume 86 , Issue 3 , June 1981 , pp. 295 - 301
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1981

References

REFERENCES

Allwood, M. C. & Hambleton, R. (1973). The recovery of bacteria from white soft paraffin. Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology 25, 559.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baird, R. M., Awad, Z. A. & Shooter, R. A. (1980). Contaminated medicaments in use in a hospital for diseases of the skin. Journal of Hygiene 84, 103.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bergan, T. (1977). Disinfection of inanimate material in medicine. Archiv for Pharmaci og Chemi 84, 777.Google Scholar
Clausen, O. G., Aasgaard, N. B. & Solberg, O. (1973). Dithionite-thioglycollate broth (HS-T broth), a new control medium for microbial-contamination tests of medical products. Annales de Microbiologie Institut Pasteur 124B, 205.Google Scholar
Editorial (1971). Contaminated medicines. Lancet ii, 478.Google Scholar
Goldman, D. A., Martin, W. T. & Worthington, J. W. (1973). Growth of bacteria and fungi in total parenteral nutrition solutions. American Journal of Surgery 126, 314.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lassen, J. (1975). Rapid Identification of Gram-negative rods using a three-tube method combined with a dichotomic key. Acta Pathologica et Microbiologica Scandinavica Sect. B 83, 525.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maki, D. G., Anderson, R. L. & Shulman, J. A. (1974). In-use contamination of intravenous infusion fluid. Applied Microbiology 28, 778.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nordica, Pharmacopoea, Norvegia, Editio. (1966). Addendum 31–12–1970, pp. 177–8.Google Scholar
Sokolski, W. T. & Chidester, C. G. (1964). Improved viable counting method for petrolatum-based ointments. Journal of Pharmaceutical Science 53, 103.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tsuji, K. & Robertson, J. H. (1970). Microcount method for petrolatum-based topical ointments containing waxes. Applied Microbiology 20, 302.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
United States Pharmacopeia (1975). 18th ed.Eastern Pennsylvania.Google Scholar
Walsh, C. & Allwood, M. C. (1973). The isolation of micro-organisms from creams and ointments by membrane filtration. Laboratory Practice 22, 522.Google ScholarPubMed
Working Party (1971). Microbial contamination of medicines administered to hospital patients. Report by Public Health Laboratory Service Working Party. Pharmaceutical Journal 207, 96.Google Scholar