Changes in bacterial flora associated with skin damage on hands of health care personnel

Hand Hygiene

“…77 Total bacterial counts on the hands of HCWs have ranged from 3.9 x 10 4 to 4.6 x 10 6 CFU/cm 2 . 63,[78][79][80] Fingertip contamination ranged from 0 to 300 CFU when sampled by agar contact methods. 72 Price and subsequent investigators documented that although the count of transient and resident flora varies considerably among individuals, it is often relatively constant for any given individual.…”

“…78,79,94,[132][133][134][135][136][137][138][139][140][141][142] For example, in studies conducted before glove use was common among HCWs, Ayliffe and colleagues 137 found that 15% of nurses working in an isolation unit carried a median of 1x 10 4 CFU of S. aureus on their hands; 29% of nurses working in a general hospital had S. aureus on their hands (median count, 3.8 x 10 3 CFU), while 78% of those working in a hospital for dermatology patients had the organism on their hands (median count, 14.3 x 10 6 CFU). The same survey revealed that 17-30% of nurses carried Gram-negative bacilli on their hands (median counts ranged from 3.4 x 10 3 CFU to 38 x 10 3 CFU).…”

“…Skin excoriation may lead to bacteria colonizing the skin and possible spread of bloodborne viruses as well as other microorganisms. 79 Sore hands may also lead to decreased compliance with hand hygiene practices (see also Part I, Section 15).…”

“…577 Damage to the skin also changes skin flora, resulting in more frequent colonization by staphylococci and Gram-negative bacilli. 79,219 Although alcohols are safer than detergents, 262 they can cause dryness and skin irritation. 48,578 The lipid-dissolving effect of alcohols is inversely related to their concentration, 577 and ethanol tends to be less irritating than n-propanol or isopropanol.…”

Surto em berçário por Klebsiella pneumoniae produtora de beta-lactamase de espectro estendido atribuído à colonização de profissional de saúde portador de onicomicose

“…The swabs were collected only from those workers who had skin lesions on their hands and who were therefore more susceptible to colonization by unusual microorganisms. 9 The identification and treatment of the colonized worker allowed for the immediate control of the outbreak. We infer that the nurse auxiliary probably acquired ESBLproducing Klebsiella from one of her first colonized patients, thereafter becoming a reservoir for the bacterium and then spreading it.…”