Abstract
The practice of reprocessing endoscopes and its effectiveness was evaluated in 37 services. Contamination of at least 1 endoscope could be identified in 34 (91.6%) of 37 services. Bacteria, fungi, and/or mycobacteria were isolated from 84.6% (33/39) of the colonoscopes (110-32,000 colony-forming units [CFUs]/mL) and from 80.6% (50/62) of the gastroscopes (100-33,000 CFUs/mL). Not all services followed recommended guidelines. Therefore, patients who underwent gastrointestinal endoscopies were exposed to diverse pathogens.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Acinetobacter baumannii / isolation & purification
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Aspergillus / isolation & purification
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Candida albicans / isolation & purification
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Colonoscopes / microbiology*
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Colony Count, Microbial
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Disinfection / standards*
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Enterococcus faecalis / isolation & purification
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Equipment Contamination*
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Escherichia coli / isolation & purification
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Gastroscopes / microbiology*
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Guideline Adherence*
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Klebsiella pneumoniae / isolation & purification
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Mycobacterium / isolation & purification
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Practice Guidelines as Topic
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Pseudomonas aeruginosa / isolation & purification
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Staphylococcus aureus / isolation & purification
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Surveys and Questionnaires