Stethoscopes and the Transmission of Pathogens

Batt, Murray D.; Edmiston, Charles E.; Heggers, John P.

doi:10.1017/s019594170009161x

Cited by 9 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This is the reason why different parts of stethoscopes show varied level of contamination. As the diaphragm of stethoscope has a relatively larger flat surface and frequently comes in contact with patient's skin and clothes, the chances of bacterial colonization are immense when compared to smaller area of bell and its infrequent use by our clinicians [13]. The present study too reported that diaphragms were significantly more colonized (53.33%) than bell portions (21.33%) of the stethoscopes; (p value < 0.001).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 43%

Stethoscope, “the friendly foe” – A study to evaluate bacterial contamination of stethoscopes and disinfection practices

Kaur

Rawat

Gupta

et al. 2018

J Infect Dev Ctries

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction: Stethoscope is used to assess the health of patients but can also act as a potential source of disease transmission. The study was aimed to find out the contamination rate of stethoscopes, evaluate awareness and attitude of healthcare workers (HCWs) about stethoscope cleaning, and determine the efficacy of 70% alcohol as cleaning agent. Methodology: This hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital in October 2015 among healthcare workers. They were asked to fill a questionnaire followed by culturing the diaphragm and bell surfaces of their stethoscopes before and after cleaning with 70% isopropyl alcohol. Results: Out of 100 stethoscopes cultured, 56 were found to be contaminated at least with one microorganism. Acinetobacter cbc was the commonest contaminant followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae. Three out of twelve S. aureus strains showed methicillin resistance. Stethoscopes used in emergency areas were more contaminated when compared to wards and out-patient departments. Despite 100% awareness among HCWs, the importance of stethoscope cleaning is realized by only 70% who practice it regularly. Conclusion: Stethoscope is a potential vector for transmission of healthcare associated infections. Hence it is vital to clean it after each use to reduce the load of iatrogenic infections.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 43%

Stethoscope, “the friendly foe” – A study to evaluate bacterial contamination of stethoscopes and disinfection practices

Kaur

Rawat

Gupta

et al. 2018

J Infect Dev Ctries

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The current finding indicated a significant number of healthcare providers rarely disinfect their stethoscope. In connection, different studies from different parts of the globe reported infrequent disinfection practice habits, a study from Nepal only (6.89%) of healthcare workers disinfecting after every use [14], in USA 24% of healthcare workers only disinfect their stethoscopes after every patient [18], in Turkey cleaning of stethoscopes with various disinfectants at certain intervals was reported 50.4% [38], in Pakistan, a considerably lower prevalence of stethoscope cleaning was observed 37.7% [39], and in Nigeria 87.9% of the participants did not clean their stethoscopes after examining each patient [40].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this regard, the stethoscope, which is universally used as a medical device by healthcare workers, is more likely to be contaminated by microorganisms, if it is not disinfected and may transmit pathogens from one patient to another [14-18]. Without proper disinfection, stethoscopes represent a potential means of transmission of microorganisms from one patient to another, and between animate and inanimate objects and vice versa [18,19].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Without proper disinfection, stethoscopes represent a potential means of transmission of microorganisms from one patient to another, and between animate and inanimate objects and vice versa [18,19]. For this reason, regular cleaning with a suitable disinfectant is decisive and part of a multi-barrier strategy to prevent HAIs; since failure to properly disinfect or sterilize equipment carries not only risk associated with breach of host barriers but also risk for person-to-person transmission and transmission of environmental pathogens (e.g., Pseudomonas aeruginosa ) [14, 20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is strong scientific evidences documenting the various pathogens found colonizing stethoscope surfaces [14,15,21,22]. Several studies have demonstrated that stethoscope membranes harbor bacteria, including resistant microorganisms such as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE) and Clostridium difficile [14,23,24]. It was also reported that S aureus colonies can survive on stethoscope membranes for longer than 18 hours [25].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Stethoscope disinfection is rarely done in Ethiopia: what are the associated factors?

Sahiledengle

2018

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

14Background: The stethoscope, which is universally used as a medical device by healthcare 15 providers, is likely to be contaminated by pathogenic microorganisms. And regular cleaning of 16 the diaphragm of the stethoscope with a suitable disinfectant is decisive. However, in the 17 resource constrained setting like many healthcare facilities in Ethiopia healthcare provider's 18 stethoscope disinfection practice and its associated factors have not been well studied so far. 19Therefore, this study sought to determine stethoscope disinfection practice and associated factors 20 among the healthcare providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 21Methods: A facility-based cross-sectional survey was carried out between April and May 2016. 22For this survey, 576 healthcare providers were included from 21 healthcare facilities in Addis 23Ababa. A pre-tested structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics 24 were computed. Binary and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify 25 factors that were significantly associated with stethoscope disinfection after every use. 26Results: Five hundred forty six participants were take part in this study, for a response rate of 27 94.7%. Of these, only 39.7% (95%CI: 35.9, 44.0%) of healthcare providers disinfecting their 28 stethoscope after every use. Physicians were less likely to disinfect there stethoscope compared 29 to nurses (AOR=0.21; 95%CI: 0.09, 0.49). Healthcare providers who had awareness on infection 30 prevention guideline, healthcare providers who had favorable attitude towards infection 31 prevention and participants having safe infection prevention practice have better stethoscope 32 disinfection practice after every use as compared to their counterparts (AOR=1.93; 95%CI: 1.31, 33 2.82), (AOR=1.73, 95%CI: 1.02, 2.93), and (AOR=3.79, 95%CI: 2.45-5.84), respectively.34 Conclusions: Only a small proportion of healthcare providers disinfect their stethoscopes after 35 every use. Factors such as awareness on infection prevention guidelines, favorable attitude 3 36 towards infection prevention and safe infection prevention practice were the independent 37 predictors of stethoscopes disinfection after every use. Hence, implementation of effective 38 training on stethoscope disinfection along with increasing awareness on infection prevention 39 may improve stethoscope disinfection practice.40

show abstract

Stethoscope and Non-Infrared Thermometer Disinfection among Physicians: A Cross-Sectional Study with Implications for the Control of COVID-19

Sahiledengle

Tekalegn

Bekele

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Stethoscopes and non infrared thermometers are the customary medical equipment used by the physicians on a daily basis, among various patients. With the rise of potential infections in the healthcare facilities and the transmission nature of the current volantly evolving COVID 19, consistent and correct disinfections of these devices after each use should not be pardoned. This study, therefore, describes the level of stethoscope and non infrared thermometer disinfection practices among physicians and determines its associated factors during the COVID 19 pandemic. Methods: A nationwide cross-sectional online survey was circulated using an anonymous and self-reporting questionnaire via Google form with a consent form appended to it. Results: Four hundred twenty-two physicians participated (62.80% medical doctors, 33.65% seniors, and 3.55% residents). The proportion of stethoscope and non Infrared thermometer disinfections after every use was 13.9% (95%CI: 10.9-17.6) and 20.4% (95%CI: 16.7-24.5), respectively. In adjusted analyses, taking COVID-19 training (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR]: 2.52; 95% [Confidence Interval (CI)]: 1.29-4.92) and the availability of stethoscope disinfection materials at the workplace (AOR: 3.03; 95% CI: 1.29-7.10) were significantly increased the odds of stethoscope disinfection after every use. The odds of stethoscope disinfection after every use was significantly decreased for those who reported the use of shared stethoscope (AOR: 0.34; 95% CI: 0.12-0.92). Among the physicians, disinfection after every use was significantly higher in resident physicians compared to those of general practitioners for both stethoscope (AOR: 4.61; 95%CI: 1.29-16.52) and non Infrared thermometers (AOR: 7.10; 95%CI: 2.30-21.95). Conclusion: Only a wee share of the respondents reported that they have disinfected their stethoscopes and non-infrared thermometers after every use possibly jeopardizing both patients and clinicians safety, particularly during the COVID 19 pandemic and these results must be sternly dealt with. Provisions of training and securing constant and available stethoscope disinfection supplies can significantly increase disinfection practices among the physicians after every use. These simple interventions could be replicated by other healthcare facilities.

show abstract

Stethoscopes and the Transmission of Pathogens

Cited by 9 publications

References 0 publications

Stethoscope, “the friendly foe” – A study to evaluate bacterial contamination of stethoscopes and disinfection practices

Stethoscope, “the friendly foe” – A study to evaluate bacterial contamination of stethoscopes and disinfection practices

Stethoscope disinfection is rarely done in Ethiopia: what are the associated factors?

Stethoscope and Non-Infrared Thermometer Disinfection among Physicians: A Cross-Sectional Study with Implications for the Control of COVID-19

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About