No abstract

Meatal care with a poly-antibiotic ointment twice daily was evaluated in a prospective, randomized, controlled study of patients with temporary indwelling urethral catheters. Bacteriuria was acquired in 14 of 214 patients treated (6.5 per cent), compared to 16 of 214 patients not given treatment (7.5 per cent). The rate of bacteriuria was slightly lower in the treated than in the untreated group by each of 4 different statistical methods. In a subset of female patients at high risk a significant reduction in the rate of bacteriuria in treated patients was found by 1 method of analysis. These results contrast to previous studies in our hospital in which meatal care, using either nonantiseptic soap and water or an iodophor solution and ointment, was found to predispose to bacteriuria in high risk female patients. The benefit, if any, of meatal care with poly-antibiotic ointment appears to be small.

During a 30-month period in our 570-bed private community hospital, employees reported 218 injuries from needles and other sharp objects. Five of these injuries were from needles used on patients known to be hepatitis B surface antigens (HBsAg) positive. Four were from blades or scalpels used on HBsAg positive patients. A nother needle injury resulted in serious Staphylococcus aureus infection. Thirty-three percent of the injuries were from improperly disposed objects, generally in trash baskets in patient rooms. Housekeeping employees were the “innocent victims” of more than one-half of the injuries from such improperly disposed objects. A survey of reporting practices revealed housekeepers reported all their injuries. Underreporting was identified as a problem with laboratory personnel and nurses who tended to make their own judgment concerning the extent of the injury. An effective innovation resulting from our survey was the use of plastic irrigation bottles as an inexpensive and readily available container for disposal of sharps.