LA superbug outbreak calls new attention to dirty surgical instruments
An outbreak of infections and deaths apparently linked to poorly cleaned medical scopes at a Los Angeles hospital is bringing renewed attention to the broader problem of dirty surgical instruments — the subject of a major Center investigation.
In recent days, an antibiotic-resistant “superbug” known as CRE killed two people and infected five others at UCLA’s Ronald Reagan Medical Center; an estimated 179 more patients may have been exposed from October to January after undergoing a procedure called an endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography. Authorities suspect the deadly germs were transmitted by inadequately sterilized medical scopes used in the procedure, known as duodenoscopes, which are difficult to clean because of their complex design.
But a 2012 investigation by the Center for Public Integrity revealed that the problem of dirty instruments is national in scope, and defies easy solutions. A companion piece was done by NBC’s TODAY show. The Center series, “Filthy surgical instruments: The hidden threat in America’s operation rooms,” detailed how contaminated medical instruments have been showing up in hospitals and outpatient surgery centers with alarming regularity. In 2009, the Department of Veterans Affairs Affairs admitted that 10,737 veterans in Florida, Tennessee and Georgia were given endoscopies or colonoscopies since 2002 with endoscopes that may have been inadequately cleaned. Investigation of a 2008 hepatitis C outbreak that sickened at least six people in Las Vegas revealed that an outpatient surgery center was improperly cleaning endoscopes and reusing biopsy forceps designed for a single use.
At a little-noticed 2011 Food and Drug Administration workshop on the problem, some critics put the blame on poor or overly-complex design of instruments. Decades ago, medical instruments were almost exclusively made of steel and glass, and many resembled the tools used by butchers or auto mechanics. Cleaning those tools was easy, and sterilization required little more than a heavy shot of steam.
Related: Filthy surgical instruments: The hidden threat in America's operating rooms
There’s more to this story. Click here to read the rest at the Center for Public Integrity.
This story is part of Health. Click here to read more stories in this topic.
Related stories
Filthy surgical instruments: The hidden threat in America's operating rooms
Medical device industry lobbies IRS, Congress to dodge health law tax
Federal agencies falling short in protecting U.S. food supply
Panel recommends new agency to investigate safety of health information technology
CORRECTED: States pushing efforts to require certification for cleaning medical instruments
Copyright 2014 The Center for Public Integrity. This story was published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C.
