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Published on: February 9, 2011

Outbreak of postoperative empyema caused by Serratia marcescens in a thoracic surgery unit

A Ulu-Kilic1, O Parkan, S Ersoy

  • 1Department of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Turkey.

The Journal of Hospital Infection
|September 5, 2013
PubMed

Insights

A Serratia marcescens outbreak in a thoracic surgery intensive care unit was linked to contaminated portable suction devices. This highlights the importance of environmental hygiene in preventing hospital-acquired infections.

Area of Science:

  • Medical Microbiology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Hospital Epidemiology

Background:

  • Postoperative empyema cases caused by Serratia marcescens increased in a thoracic surgery intensive care unit (ICU).
  • Serratia marcescens is an opportunistic pathogen often associated with hospital-acquired infections.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the source of a Serratia marcescens outbreak in an ICU.
  • To identify the link between clinical isolates and environmental samples.

Main Methods:

  • Collection of pleural fluid samples from patients and environmental samples from the ICU and operating room.
  • Identification of Serratia marcescens isolates.
  • Repetitive sequence-based polymerase chain reaction (rep-PCR) for strain typing.

Main Results:

  • Eight Serratia marcescens isolates were identified, with six from pleural fluid and two from portable suction devices.
  • All eight isolates were genetically identical, confirmed by rep-PCR.
  • This is the first reported outbreak of Serratia marcescens linked to contaminated portable suction machines.

Conclusions:

  • Contaminated portable suction devices were identified as the source of the Serratia marcescens outbreak.
  • Strict environmental cleaning protocols are crucial to prevent nosocomial infections.
  • This outbreak underscores the need for vigilance in monitoring and controlling microbial contamination in healthcare settings.
Keywords:
OutbreakPostoperative empyemaSerratia marcescens

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