Abstract
Abstract We conducted a study to determine the usefulness of the Gram stain in the detection of intravascular catheter-associated infection. A total of 330 intravascular catheters were prospectively collected from adults and children suspected of having such an infection. Semiquantitative solid-agar cultures of the distal catheter tip were correlated with blood cultures. Catheter-associated bacteremia occurred in 34 per cent of cases in which catheter tips were colonized (≥15 colonies per agar plate). There were no cases of catheter-associated bacteremia in patients with uncolonized catheters. Immediately after culture, whole catheter segments were stained by the Gram technique. Gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria and yeast were easily identifiable under oil immersion (X1000), located predominantly on external catheter surfaces. Any catheter with at least one organism per 20 oil-immersion fields was designated as positive by Gram stain, but the majority of the 41 positive catheters had much larger nu...
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.