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Comparative study of surgical instruments from sterile-service departments for presence of residual gram-negative endotoxin and proteinaceous deposits

Comparative study of surgical instruments from sterile-service departments for presence of residual gram-negative endotoxin and proteinaceous deposits
Comparative study of surgical instruments from sterile-service departments for presence of residual gram-negative endotoxin and proteinaceous deposits
The ineffective cleaning of surgical instruments may be a vector for the transmission of hospital-acquired infections. The aim of this research was to investigate whether further decontamination procedures need to be instigated in sterile-service departments (SSDs) to reduce the risk of nosocomial illnesses, such as endotoxemia, sepsis, or iatrogenic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (to date, 1,147 cases of confirmed Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease deaths in the United Kingdom since 1990 have been reported). Instrument sets were obtained from nine anonymous United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS) primary care trust SSDs. The investigation implemented an advanced light microscopy technique, episcopic differential interference contrast microscopy with the sensitive fluorescent reagents SYPRO Ruby and 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride (DAPI), to detect proteinaceous and microbial contamination levels. Gram-negative lipopolysaccharide (LPS) endotoxin was monitored using a dansylated polymyxin B fluorochrome agent. None of the 260 instruments examined displayed signs of microbial colonization or LPS endotoxin contamination. However, over 60 percent of the instruments showed a high degree of protein soiling (0.4 to 4.2 mu g protein/mm(2)). Some instruments appeared soiled with crystalline deposits that may consist of a potentially hazardous material contributing to inflammation and/or surgical shock. It is clear that the overall standard for cleaning must be raised in order to fulfill the imminent introduction of new European standards and to reduce the risk of cross-patient contamination and iatrogenic transmission
Endotoxin, Prion disease, surgical instruments, cleaning, hospitals, sterilisation
0095-1137
3728-3733
Lipscomb, I.P.
bb93c4d9-33b7-4323-9e3c-8922d13994cc
Sihota, A.
ebdd3702-300c-4b38-84ac-f332e6b76fe0
Keevil, C.W.
cb7de0a7-ce33-4cfa-af52-07f99e5650eb
Lipscomb, I.P.
bb93c4d9-33b7-4323-9e3c-8922d13994cc
Sihota, A.
ebdd3702-300c-4b38-84ac-f332e6b76fe0
Keevil, C.W.
cb7de0a7-ce33-4cfa-af52-07f99e5650eb

Lipscomb, I.P., Sihota, A. and Keevil, C.W. (2006) Comparative study of surgical instruments from sterile-service departments for presence of residual gram-negative endotoxin and proteinaceous deposits. Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 44 (10), 3728-3733. (doi:10.1128/JCM.01280-06).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The ineffective cleaning of surgical instruments may be a vector for the transmission of hospital-acquired infections. The aim of this research was to investigate whether further decontamination procedures need to be instigated in sterile-service departments (SSDs) to reduce the risk of nosocomial illnesses, such as endotoxemia, sepsis, or iatrogenic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (to date, 1,147 cases of confirmed Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease deaths in the United Kingdom since 1990 have been reported). Instrument sets were obtained from nine anonymous United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS) primary care trust SSDs. The investigation implemented an advanced light microscopy technique, episcopic differential interference contrast microscopy with the sensitive fluorescent reagents SYPRO Ruby and 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride (DAPI), to detect proteinaceous and microbial contamination levels. Gram-negative lipopolysaccharide (LPS) endotoxin was monitored using a dansylated polymyxin B fluorochrome agent. None of the 260 instruments examined displayed signs of microbial colonization or LPS endotoxin contamination. However, over 60 percent of the instruments showed a high degree of protein soiling (0.4 to 4.2 mu g protein/mm(2)). Some instruments appeared soiled with crystalline deposits that may consist of a potentially hazardous material contributing to inflammation and/or surgical shock. It is clear that the overall standard for cleaning must be raised in order to fulfill the imminent introduction of new European standards and to reduce the risk of cross-patient contamination and iatrogenic transmission

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More information

Submitted date: June 2006
Published date: October 2006
Keywords: Endotoxin, Prion disease, surgical instruments, cleaning, hospitals, sterilisation

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 43267
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/43267
ISSN: 0095-1137
PURE UUID: 7a766f93-ce81-4cb3-9c79-02991455d0fc
ORCID for C.W. Keevil: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-1917-7706

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 19 Jan 2007
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 03:24

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Contributors

Author: I.P. Lipscomb
Author: A. Sihota
Author: C.W. Keevil ORCID iD

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