Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T23:20:30.107Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Acquisition of Staphylococcus aureus by patients undergoing cytotoxic therapy in an ultra-clean isolation unit

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2009

H. J. Andrews  and
K. D. Bagshawe
H. J. Andrews
Affiliation:
Bacteriology department and Edgar laboratory, Charing Cross Hospital Medical School, at Fulham Hospital, St Dunstan's Road, London W.6
K. D. Bagshawe
Affiliation:
Bacteriology department and Edgar laboratory, Charing Cross Hospital Medical School, at Fulham Hospital, St Dunstan's Road, London W.6
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

The twenty-four young women and one man treated in an ultra-clean isolation ward should have had a low incidence of staphylococcal infection on grounds of age, sex and clean environment alone. However, they apparently acquired new strains of Staph. aureus at the rate of 4·7/100 patient weeks (3·9 multiple resistant strains/100 patient weeks) from the sixth week after admission onwards.

Environmental factors contributing to infection included introduction of resistant strains by the patients on admission, contact between patients in the unit, and failure to eliminate nasal carriage in staff and patients.

Host susceptibility was increased by malignancy, and by antibiotic and cytotoxic therapy. The nasal carriage rate of Staph. aureus was significantly greater for patients with repeated episodes of leucopenia induced by cytotoxic drugs.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Hygiene , Volume 64 , Issue 4 , December 1966 , pp. 501 - 511
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1966

References

REFERENCES

Bagshawe, K. D. (1963). Trophoblastic tumours; chemotherapy and developments. Br. med. J. ii, 1303.Google Scholar
Bagshawe, K. D. (1964). Ultra-clean ward for cancer chemotherapy. Br. med. J. ii, 871.Google Scholar
Bellanti, J. A., Artenstein, M. S. & Buescher, E. L. (1965). Characterization of virus neutralizing antibodies in human serum and nasal secretions. J. Immun. 94, 344.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ehrenkranz, N. J. (1966). Nasal rejection of experimentally inoculated Staphylococcus aureus; evidence for an immune reaction in man. J. Immun. 96, 509.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Knight, V. & Holzer, A. R. (1954). Studies on staphylococci from hospital patients. J. clin. Invest. 33, 1190.Google Scholar
Lacey, B. A., Winner, H. I., McLellan, M. E. & Bagshawe, K. D. (1965). Effects of microwave cookery on the bacterial counts of food. J. appl. Bact. 28, 331Google Scholar
Parker, M. T., John, M., Emond, R. T. D. & Machacek, K. D. (1965). Acquisition of Staphylococus aureus by patients in cubicles. Br. med. J. i, 1101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
P.H.L.S. Report (1965). Infections acquired in medical wards. J. Hyg., Camb. 63, 457.Google Scholar
Remington, J. S., Vosti, K. L., Lietze, A. & Zimmerman, A. L. (1964). Serum proteins and antibody activity in human nasal secretions. J. clin. Invest. 43, 1613.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ross, G. T., Goldstein, D. P., Hertz, R., Lipsett, M. B. & Odell, W. D. (1965). Sequential use of methotrexate and actinomycin D in the treatment of metastatic choriocarcinoma and related trophoblastic diseases in women. Am. J. Obstet. Gynec. 93, 223.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Seldinger, S. I. (1953). Catheter replacement of needle in percutaneous arteriography; new technique. Acta radiol. 39, 368.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Williams, R. E. O., Jevons, M. P., Shooter, R. A., Hunter, C. J. W., Girling, J. A., Griffiths, J. D. & Taylor, G. W. (1959). Nasal staphylococci and sepsis in hospital patients. Br. med. J. ii, 658.CrossRefGoogle Scholar