[Swimming plastic toy-animals as biotopes of microorganisms and possible source of infant infections (author's transl)].
Infants are particularly jeopardized as regards oral infection, because they like to put all kinds of things in their mouth. In swimming plastic toy-animals, which are mainly used in bathtubs and from which children might suck water into their mouths, more than 4 million germs/ml (when rinsed with 5 ml tryptone/NaCl solution) were found. In addition thereto, the liquid contained various types of enterobacteriaceae such as Serratia marcescens (up to 150000/ml) as well as P. aeruginosa (up to 80000/ml). 19 of the toys from seven different households were "commodities" as defined by the German Food Law. If these items are used according to purpose, however, the concentration and dissemination of pathogens or facultative pathogens is unavoidable.
D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000209:etiology*; D001494:Baths; D002652:Child Behavior; D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D010842:Pica / Q000150:complications*; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012706:Serratia marcescens / Q000302:isolation & purification
Kunststoff-Schwimmtiere als Biotope für Mikroorganismen und mögliche Infektionsquellen für Kleinkinder