All Journals > Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology > October 2007 > A. baumannii Bacteremia Related to Contaminated Morphine

Article Tools

Search for Related Articles

  • By Author
  • Search In

Announcements

Highlighted Article

NHSN Annual Update:
Antimicrobial-Resistant Pathogens Associated With Healthcare-Associated Infections

Annual Summary of Data Reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2006–2007

Antimicrobial-resistant pathogens that cause healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) pose an ongoing and increasing challenge to hospitals, both in the clinical treatment of patients and in the prevention of the cross-transmission of these problematic pathogens.  Describing the magnitude of the problem with respect to these antimicrobial-resistant pathogens is challenging, because the levels of antimicrobial resistance vary for different types of healthcare facilities and for different geographic areas, and some resistance phenotypes are difficult for laboratories to detect. However, the findings from such attempts may help the infection control and public health communities target problems and utilize resources more efficiently.

In the News

Featured in The Times
"Ireland 'losing war' on superbug" February 15, 2009
Challenges of Implementing National Guidelines for the Control and Prevention of Methicillin‐Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Colonization or Infection in Acute Care Hospitals in the Republic of Ireland
Fidelma Fitzpatrick, MD; Fiona Roche, PhD; Robert Cunney, MB; Hilary Humphreys, MD; Strategy for the Control of Antimicrobial Resistance in Ireland Infection Control Subcommittee
The research, published in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, found one third of hospitals did not have a written policy on antibiotic use, and only 35% had an antibiotic stewardship programme.

October 2007

Volume 28, Number 10
Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2007;28:1213–1217
© 2007 by The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. All rights reserved.
0899-823X/2007/2810-0016$15.00
DOI: 10.1086/520741
Concise Communication

Outbreak of Acinetobacter baumannii Bacteremia Related to Contaminated Morphine Used for Patient‐Controlled Analgesia

Hsin‐Chun Lee, MD;

Nan‐Yao Lee, MD;

Chia‐Ming Chang, MD;

Cheng‐Yang Chou, MD;

Yi‐Hui Wu, RN, MPH;

Li‐Rong Wang, BS;

Nai‐Ying Ko, RN, PhD;

Ching‐Chuan Liu, MD, MPH;

Wen‐Chien Ko, MD

From the Departments of Medicine (H.‐C.L, W.‐C.K.), Obstetrics and Gynecology (C.‐Y.C.), Nursing (N.‐Y.K.), and Pediatrics (C.‐C.L.), and the Center of Infection Control (H.‐C.L., N.‐Y.L., C.‐M.C., L.‐R.W., C.‐C.L., W.‐C.K.), National Cheng Kung University Hospital, and the College of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine (N.‐Y.L, C.‐M.C., W.‐C.K.), National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan.

We investigated a cluster of postoperative febrile episodes and episodes of Acinetobacter baumannii bacteremia in obstetrics and gynecology wards after an electrical blackout and loss of the water supply. The use of patient‐controlled analgesia was the only independent risk factor associated with postoperative fever, and A. baumannii isolates recovered from the blood of patients who had received patient‐controlled analgesia were genetically related to an isolate recovered from the diluted morphine solution used for this procedure. After inappropriate preparation of the morphine solution was identified and stopped, the outbreak ended.

Received January 5, 2007; accepted May 8, 2007; electronically published August 3, 2007.

Address reprint requests to Wen‐Chien Ko, MD, Department of Internal Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, No. 138, Sheng‐Li Road, 70403, Tainan, Taiwan ().
Back to Top
Close Popup