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Comparative assessment of the effectiveness of three disinfection protocols for reducing bacterial contamination of

Patricia Sebastian Marcos1, Darren Hermes2, Mellora Sharman1

  • 1Small Animal Referral Centre, Animal Health Trust, Kentford, Suffolk, United Kingdom.

Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
|November 8, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Disinfection protocols for stethoscopes, including alcohol, disinfectants, and UV germicidal irradiation (UVGI), effectively reduced bacteria. However, UVGI showed reduced efficacy with higher contamination, and all methods provided only short-term effectiveness.

Area of Science:

  • Infection Control
  • Microbiology
  • Medical Device Disinfection

Background:

  • Stethoscopes are critical medical tools frequently contaminated with bacteria.
  • Effective disinfection of stethoscopes is essential to prevent healthcare-associated infections.
  • Assessing various disinfection methods is crucial for optimizing patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the efficacy of three common stethoscope disinfection protocols.
  • To evaluate the effectiveness of isopropyl alcohol, quaternary ammonia/biguanide disinfectants, and UV germicidal irradiation (UVGI).
  • To determine the duration of bacterial load reduction for each method.

Main Methods:

  • A crossover study design was employed.
  • Thirty stethoscopes were subjected to disinfection using three distinct protocols.
  • Bacterial loads were assessed before and after disinfection to measure efficacy.

Main Results:

  • All tested disinfection protocols demonstrated significant bacterial load reduction.
  • UV germicidal irradiation (UVGI) was less effective in reducing bacterial loads at higher contamination levels (P = .0004).
  • The antimicrobial effectiveness of all interventions was transient, indicating short-term efficacy.

Conclusions:

  • Isopropyl alcohol, chemical disinfectants, and UVGI are effective in reducing stethoscope bacterial contamination.
  • UVGI's effectiveness is compromised by high bacterial loads.
  • The short duration of effectiveness for all methods highlights the need for frequent disinfection protocols.

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