Nosocomial fungemia in neonates associated with intravascular pressure-monitoring devices.
In the period from January, 1982, to March, 1983, eight infants in the neonatal intensive care unit at one hospital had blood cultures positive for Candida parapsilosis; six cases had occurred after December, 1982. Epidemiologic investigation included a case-control study comparing the 8 cases with 29 birth weight-matched controls. Logistic regression analysis indicated that the model that best fit the observed data included the following risk factors for fungemia: duration of umbilical artery catheterization; duration of receipt of parenteral nutrition; and estimated gestational age. Parenteral nutrition therapy was often administered through the umbilical artery catheters, which were also used for monitoring arterial pressure; transducer domes thus contained parenteral nutrition fluid. Transducers were usually disinfected with alcohol. Laboratory investigation showed that the heads of 6 of 11 in-use blood pressure transducers and 1 of 4 transducers in storage after cleaning were culture-positive for C. parapsilosis. After control measures were instituted no further cases occurred.
D001769:Blood / Q000382:microbiology; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000295:instrumentation*; D002175:Candida / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000209:etiology*; D004866:Equipment Contamination; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D014160:Transducers, Pressure