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Appl Environ Microbiol. 1974 October; 28(4): 651-654
Copyright © 1974 American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Adhesive Tape: Potential Source of Nosocomial Bacteria

David M. Berkowitz, Wie-Shing Lee1, George J. Pazin, Robert B. Yee and Monto Ho

Department of Microbiology, Graduate School of Public Health, and the Division of Infectious Diseases, Departments of Medicine and Pathology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburg, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261

ABSTRACT

During a 7-day period, a variety of bacteria, including opportunistic ones, were recovered from 23 rolls of adhesive tape being used in a 16-bed intensive care unit. All rolls of tape were sterile when received from the manufacturer. Mixed flora was recovered from a total of 15 rolls, whereas eight rolls yielded pure cultures. Organisms recovered included Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and various species of Enterobacteriaceae. Although no illness or infection arising directly from contaminated adhesive tape has been documented, we feel that a potential source of infection has been identified. Most important is the fact that such tape may contaminate the hands of personnel who handle it. Also, the adhesive tape may directly contaminate a patient since it is widely used to secure artificial airways and various drainage tubes which results in the tape coming into close contact with the mucous membranes lining the patient's respiratory and urogenital tracts.

FOOTNOTES

1 Present address: Clinical Laboratories, Children's Hospital of San Francisco, 3700 California Street, San Francisco, Calif. 94119.

Appl Environ Microbiol. 1974 October; 28(4): 651-654
Copyright © 1974 American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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Copyright © 1974 by the American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.