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Culturing and Maintaining Clostridium difficile in an Anaerobic Environment
Published on: September 14, 2013
Dipping into the Clostridium difficile pool: Are alcohol-based dispensers fomites for C difficile?
James A Hall1, Ryan R Keul1, Justin D Shanks1
1Baylor Scott & White Health, Scott & White Medical Center, Temple, TX.
Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to evaluate alcohol-based dispensers as potential fomites for Clostridium difficile. A convenience sample of 120 alcohol-based dispensers was evaluated for the presence of C difficile either by culture or polymerase chain reaction for C difficile toxin. The results demonstrated that C difficile was not cultured, and C difficile toxin was not detected using polymerase chain reaction; however, gram-positive rods, Clostridium perfringens, Pantoea agglomerans, coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, Peptostreptococcus, Bacillus spp, and microaerophilic Streptococcus were present within the overflow basins of the alcohol-based dispensers.
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