The last time we mentioned duodenoscopes and the risk of infection that comes with their use, the United States had a different president. Britain was still firmly in place as a part of the European Union and the first #metoo post hadn’t yet been posted to social media.
It was 2015, and in response to a number of infections and multiple deaths stemming from infections contracted from the use of unclean ...
continue reading...It’s getting harder and harder to know just how much harm has been done in the U.S. and abroad by contaminated duodenoscopes. As more issues come to light about scope design and its impact on device cleaning and sterilization, the number of patients known to have suffered superbug infections from the devices continues to rise.
Now, thanks to a new report commissioned by a congressional investigation, ...
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Stories of illness and the dangers associated with contaminated duodenoscopes and endoscopes swept through the media recently when CRE infections sickened multiple patients in California hospitals and allegedly killed at least two.
Much of the attention and blame for those deaths and illnesses was focused on a process called reprocessing. Reprocessing is the process of cleaning a duodenoscope or endoscope and making it ready for the next patient. Given that ...
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently ordered all three duodenoscope manufacturers marketing in the United States to conduct postmarket surveillance studies to assess how their devices are reprocessed (or cleaned) in “real-world settings.”
Duodenoscopes, a type of reusable medical device used in endoscopic procedures, have received a great deal of attention recently after being linked to several deaths and hundreds of infections at two ...
continue reading...The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued a safety communication about infections associated with the use of reprocessed flexible bronchoscopes. The notice comes as part of the agency’s ongoing investigation into infections caused by reprocessed reusable medical devices, such as duodenoscopes.
A flexible bronchoscope is a long, thin fiber-optic tube that is inserted into a patient’s throat through the mouth or nose. It allows ...
continue reading...The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a report concluding that 37,000 U.S. deaths from antibiotic resistant germs and an intestinal bug could have been prevented. The CDC says that the deaths, occurring over a five year period, could have been reduced through closer coordination between healthcare officials and public health departments.
Each year, antibiotic-resistant germs such as carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteria (CRE) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), ...
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