Manual resuscitators in successive use in the same patient: reservoir of multi- and extensively resistant bacteria

SummaryTo determine the bacterial load on manual resuscitators (MRs), swab samples of MR connectors from a Brazilian intensive care unit were collected at time zero, and after 24 and 48 h use in the same patient. From 20 MRs, a total of 54 bacteria were isolated: six at t = 0, 17 at t = 24, and 31 at t = 48. Staphylococcus aureus, Acinetobacter baumannii, Serratia marcescens, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were the predominant isolates, and multidrug resistance was widespread in all species. Greater awareness of the need to ensure effective decontamination of MRs between patients, as well as more frequent replacement of MRs in individual patients, is recommended to minimize the risk of (re)colonization/infection of the respiratory tract.