Blood Culture Contamination Research Articles

Do blood contamination reduction devices work? A single institution comparison.

We compare two initial specimen diversion devices evaluated over 3 months to investigate their utility in lowering blood culture contamination rates at or below 1%. Overall contamination rates during trial periods were 2.46% and 2.60% but usage was low, whereas device-specific contamination rates were 0.68% and 0.8%, respectively.

The Effect of a Care Bundle on the Rate of Blood Culture Contamination in a General Intensive Care Unit.

Background/objectives: Blood culture (BC) contamination is a frequent problem which leads to increased laboratory workload, inappropriate use of antibiotics and the associated adverse events, and increased healthcare costs. This study prospectively examined the effect of a care bundle on BC contamination rates in a high workload ICU. Results: During the study, in total, 4236 BC vials were collected. After the intervention, the BC contamination rate decreased significantly from 6.2% to 1.3%. The incidence rate of contaminated BC sets was significantly lower following the intervention: 0.461 vs. 0.154 BC sets per 100 ICU bed-days. Overall compliance with the BC care bundle increased dramatically from 3.4% to 96.9%. Methods: We performed a before-after study in a general ICU from January 2018 to May 2019, with the intervention starting on November 2018. Blood culture sets were classified as positive, contaminated, indeterminate, and negative. We used bivariate and interrupted time series analysis to assess the effect of the intervention on BC contamination rates and other BC quality indicators. Conclusions: The BC care bundle was effective in reducing BC contamination rates and improving several quality indicators in our setting. The indeterminate BC rate is an important but understudied problem, and we suggest that it should be included in BC quality indicators as well. A significant limitation of the study was that the long-term effect of the intervention was not assessed.

American Society for Microbiology evidence-based laboratory medicine practice guidelines to reduce blood culture contamination rates: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

SUMMARYBlood cultures (BCs) are one of the critical tests used to detect bloodstream infections. BC results are not 100% specific. Interpretation of BC results is often complicated by detecting microbial contamination rather than true infection. False positives due to blood culture contamination (BCC) vary from 1% to as high as >10% of all BC results. False-positive BC results may result in patients undergoing unnecessary antimicrobial treatments, increased healthcare costs, and delay in detecting the true cause of infection or other non-infectious illness. Previous guidelines from the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute, College of American Pathologists, and others, based on expert opinion and surveys, promoted a limit of ≤3% as acceptable for BCC rates. However, the data supporting such recommendations are controversial. A previous systematic review of BCC examined three practices for reducing BCC rates (venipuncture, phlebotomy teams, and pre-packaged kits). Subsequently, numerous studies on different practices including using diversion devices, disinfectants, and education/training to lower BCC have been published. The goal of the current guideline is to identify beneficial intervention strategies to reduce BCC rates, including devices, practices, and education/training by providers in collaboration with the laboratory. We performed a systematic review of the literature between 2017 and 2022 using numerous databases. Of the 11,319 unique records identified, 311 articles were sought for full-text review, of which 177 were reviewed; 126 of the full-text articles were excluded based on pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were extracted from a total of 49 articles included in the final analysis. An evidenced-based committee's expert panel reviewed all the references as mentioned in Data Collection and determined if the articles met the inclusion criteria. Data from extractions were captured within an extraction template in the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's Systematic Review Data Repository (https://srdr.ahrq.gov/). BCC rates were captured as the number of events (contaminated samples) per arm (standard practice versus improvement practice). Modified versions of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Study Quality Assessment Tools were used for risk of bias assessment (https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/study-quality-assessment-tools). We used Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations to assess strength of evidence. There are several interventions that resulted in significant reduction in BCC rates: chlorhexidine as a disinfectant for skin preparation, using a diversion device prior to drawing BCs, using sterile technique practices, using a phlebotomy team to obtain BCs, and education/training programs. While there were no substantial differences between methods of decreasing BCC, our results indicate that the method of implementation can determine the success or failure of the intervention. Our evidence-based systematic review and meta-analysis support several interventions to effectively reduce BCC by approximately 40%-60%. However, devices alone without an education/training component and buy-in from key stakeholders to implement various interventions would not be as effective in reducing BCC rates.

Enhancing Patient Safety: The Role of Interdisciplinary Teams in Reducing Blood Culture Contamination.

Blood cultures are vital to diagnostic workups among many hospitalized patients, providing valuable information about bloodstream infections (BSIs), which cause roughly 250 000 deaths annually between North America and Europe. Despite advances in health care, blood culture contamination remains a substantial problem, with deleterious effects on patient mortality, patient and hospital costs, and microbial resistance. This article reviews the repercussions of blood culture contamination on the health care system and delineates evidence-based strategies to decrease contamination rates. To reduce blood culture contamination rates, our health care facility undertook a quality improvement initiative. A task force was created, consisting of leadership from the laboratory, phlebotomy, nursing, pathology, internal medicine teams, emergency medical services, and others. Measures included comprehensive staff training, standardization of protocols and supplies across facilities, and the introduction of waste tubes and smaller-volume chlorhexidine applicators for skin preparation. Data on blood culture contamination rates were collected before and after implementation. Prior to the intervention, the average monthly blood culture contamination rate across our facilities was 3.76%. Following the intervention, this rate decreased significantly to 2.07%, representing a reduction of 44.95%. Statistical analysis revealed a strong association between the implemented interventions and the decreased contamination rates, with a chi-square value of 62.3, 1 degree of freedom, and a P value of less than .001. These results indicate that the interventions were highly effective. Furthermore, the reduced contamination rates were sustained in the subsequent months, consistently remaining below 2%. The study demonstrated a substantial reduction in blood culture contamination rates through targeted interventions, highlighting the efficacy of combining evidence-based strategies with interdisciplinary teamwork to improve patient care outcomes.

Guía de práctica clínica para la toma de hemocultivos

Some factors that affect the performance of blood cultures are skin aseptic technique, blood volume, number of samples, and incubation time. However, blood culture collection is a simple technique; contaminated blood cultures can derive in erroneous diagnosis and treatment, which may increase the patients’ morbimortality. To establish and standardize the procedures and technical resources that allow for generating optimal samples for blood cultures, a multidisciplinary group of experts developed Guía de práctica clínica para la toma de muestra de hemocultivos (Clinical Practice Guide for Blood Culture Sample Collection). This guideline includes recommendations for taking blood samples for blood cultures and blood samples for blood cultures by intravascular devices.

Implementation of an initial specimen blood culture diversion device to reduce blood culture contamination: lessons learned.

Implementation of an initial specimen blood culture diversion device to reduce blood culture contamination: lessons learned.

Illustration of the Financial Impact of Usage of Initial Specimen Diversion Devices (ISDD) or Continued Educational Initiatives on the Costs from Blood Culture Contamination

Abstract Introduction/Objective Blood culture contamination (BCC) has the potential to lead to additional healthcare system costs and harm to patient. Two ways to reduce BCC have been explored in the literature and are economically modeled including initial specimen diversion devices (ISDD) and continued education on phlebotomy. Methods/Case Report A literature review on the economic costs of BCC, ISDD efficacy, and phlebotomy education to reduce BCC rates was undertaken. The reported average BCC at a veteran affairs medical center (VAMC), its reported rate during a month of phlebotomy training, the cost of an ISDD device at VAMC, and the average wage for 4 hours of phlebotomy manager time for training was noted. An illustrative economic model involving 100 patients was used at BCC rates of 1%, 2%, and 3% along with what had been observed at the VAMC was used for economic modeling. Results (if a Case Study enter NA) It was previously reported by Skoglund et al that in laboratories with rapid diagnostic testing modalities (such as MALDI-TOF or PCR testing), the cost per BCC event is $13,026 versus $8,287 in costs for a negative blood culture. ISDD efficacy in the literature reviewed (74.1% to 87.5%), continuous education efficacy (16.2% to 57.8%), ISDD device cost ($17.70 per device), and the hourly wage of a phlebotomy supervisor ($29.34) were noted. The reported average BCC rate from a regional VAMC was 1.33%, and during the month with education, the rate was 0.5%. From a model of 100 patients, ISDD device savings ranged from $1,741.60-$2,376.63 (1% BCR), $5,253.20-$6,523.25 (2% BCR), and $8,764.79-$10,669.88 (3% BCR). Education savings ranged from $755.98-$2,727.41 (1% BCR), $1,523.70-5,466.55 (2% BCR), and $2,291.42-$8,205.69 (3% BCR). The observed impact of education at the regional VAMC would have resulted in savings of $650.83 per 100 patients. Conclusion Both education and ISDD devices can result in significant savings from the costs of BCC.

Low penicillin susceptibility in Streptococcus mitis/oralis from bloodstream infections in pediatric populations.

Existing research primarily focuses on specific populations, such as those with hematopathy or tumors, who experience Streptococcus mitis/oralis bacteremia. Limited studies have been conducted on the prevalence of bloodstream infections caused by S. mitis/oralis across the entire pediatric population. It was found that the contamination rate of S. mitis/oralis isolated from blood cultures was notably high in our study. Therefore, this study evaluated the clinical characteristics and drug resistance patterns of bloodstream infections caused by S. mitis/oralis across the entire pediatric populations, explicitly excluding cases of blood culture contamination. The observed low susceptibility rate to penicillin, coupled with the emergence of multi-drug-resistant strains, underscores the imperative for continuous monitoring of the evolving antimicrobial resistance in S. mitis/oralis.

472 Blood Culture Contamination Rate as a Novel Way to Assess Safety of Ultrasound Guided Intravenous Catheters

472 Blood Culture Contamination Rate as a Novel Way to Assess Safety of Ultrasound Guided Intravenous Catheters

Blood Culture Contamination in a Busy Emergency Ward of a Tertiary Care Hospital in Kolkata

Blood Culture Contamination in a Busy Emergency Ward of a Tertiary Care Hospital in Kolkata

Effectiveness of A Nurse-Led Multimodal Intervention in Preventing Blood Culture Contamination: A Before-and-After Study.

Blood culture is crucial for accurate and timely bacteremia diagnosis and guide antibiotic therapy. However, during culture sampling, contamination can occur, resulting in misdiagnosis, unnecessary antibiotic exposure, and prolonged hospitalization. This before-and-after intervention study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a multimodal intervention in preventing blood culture contamination. The study was conducted in a 170-bed hospital in Portugal and included a total of 23,566 blood cultures. Contamination rates were assessed in two phases: Phase 1 (before intervention, month 0) included 10,928 cultures, and Phase 2 (after intervention, month 6) included 12,638 cultures. During the study period, a multimodal intervention targeting the nursing staff was implemented, consisting of training actions, guideline updates, regular data monitoring and feedback, and introduction of a blood culture pack. Following the intervention, blood culture contamination decreased from 6.8% (Phase 1) to 3.9% (Phase 2). A comparative analysis revealed that the risk of contamination before the intervention was nearly four times higher in first culture, OR = 3.97 (CI 2.86-5.49). Our findings suggest that the multimodal intervention enhanced nurses' adherence to recommended practices, resulting in a reduced risk of blood culture contamination, earlier identification of infectious agents, and improved accuracy of antibiotic therapy.

Implementing a quality improvement plan to reduce the blood culture contamination rate in pediatric patients: A quasi-experimental study.

Implementing a quality improvement plan to reduce the blood culture contamination rate in pediatric patients: A quasi-experimental study.

Back to Basics: Blood Culture Contamination Reduction Across a Multicenter Academic Health System

Background: Blood culture contamination is common in healthcare and contributes to diagnostic uncertainty, unnecessary treatments and follow-up testing, increased length of stay, higher rates of reportable healthcare-associated infections and events, over utilization of resources and staff including consultative care, and undue emotional stress to patients. The national benchmark for institutional blood culture contamination rates as recommended by The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) and the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) is < 3 %. Our institution’s overall rate was 8.9% with the highest burden being from our Emergency Department (ED) locations. We formed a multidisciplinary team aimed to reduce these rates through efforts centered around education and simplification of the collection process. Method: Working closely with and gathering feedback from nursing staff, nurse educators, and supply chain, we developed a blood culture collection kit that included all items necessary for blood culture collection thus eliminating the need for nurses to gather these items individually prior to collection. Additionally, simple step-by-step educational materials (Fig. 1) detailing the collection technique were provided. Education was presented at nursing huddles and skills fairs prior to kit roll-out. Blood culture kits were then stocked in place of individual blood culture collection bottles in all ED stock rooms in August 2022. Result: The 12-week pre-intervention period found 249 contamination events from 4265 total collections deriving a contamination rate of 5.8% across our health system’s four ED locations. During a 12-week post-intervention period following kit roll-out, 116 contamination events occurred from 3629 total collections deriving a contamination rate of 3.2% across our four ED locations. Given our results, we ultimately rolled this out to all units in all locations of our health system. When including all time from kit rollout to present (August 2022 to November 2023, 16 months), there were 1077 contamination events from 43379 total collections deriving an overall contamination rate of 2.5%. When compared to the 16 months prior to the kit rollout (April 2021 to July 2022) there were 1803 contamination events in 49335 total collections (3.7% contamination rate) deriving an overall percent reduction of 32.1%. Conclusion: We were able to decrease our health system’s blood culture contamination rate through simple interventions aimed at reducing the mental burden on nursing staff by developing a blood culture collection kit and educational materials. Since implementation of the kits, we have continued to maintain lower contamination rates as evident by our 16 month follow up period.

Reducing Blood Culture Contamination in Adult Patients with Cancer Presenting to the Emergency Department

Background: Infection is one of the most common complications of cancer and cancer treatment. Most patients admitted for fever or infection come through the Emergency Department (ED), which is a primary site for blood culture collection. Contamination of blood cultures complicates the diagnoses, compromises quality of care, leads to unnecessary antibiotic exposure and increases financial burdens. It may also lead to unnecessary removal of central venous access devices or delay of critical therapy or procedures. At our institution, the contamination rate of blood cultures drawn in the ED was over twice that of the remainder of the hospital (2.8 versus 0.8), prompting this quality improvement project. Unlike on hospital floors, nurses, instead of phlebotomists, draw most blood cultures due to the urgency of managing suspected sepsis. Our aim was to decrease the ED contamination rate by 20 percent after the first PDSA cycle, and ultimately bring it on par with the remainder of the hospital. Methods: First, we compared ED contamination rates versus other hospital inpatient floors and outpatient centers over a three-month period. We then evaluated the contamination rates of ED nurses versus ED phlebotomists and peripheral versus central line blood draws. Process mapping and fishbone analysis helped identify practices contributing to higher contamination rates. Key drivers of these practices were diagrammed, and potential interventions were ranked on a prioritization matrix. Results: We identified use of alcohol rather than chlorhexidine swabs for peripheral disinfection and inconsistent techniques of blood draw by nurses as critical contributors to increased contamination rates in the ED. Our intervention was creating premade blood culture kits promoting the use of chlorhexidine swabs through availability and easy access in the fast-paced ED environment. Ten cubic centimeter (cc) syringes in the kits encouraged withdrawal of adequate blood samples in compliance with the 7-10 cc guideline. Designated nursing team leaders checked off ED nurses at the bedside, implementing education and adherence in using the blood culture collection kits. The average number of blood cultures in the emergency department was 1,400. A reduction in blood culture contamination from 2.46 percent to 1.89 percent was seen after two months. Conclusions: A guideline-driven, standardized blood culture collection process followed by ED nurses is vital to reducing blood culture contamination. Chlorhexidine is necessary to maintain the lowest contamination rates. Readily available premade blood culture kits improve compliance with materials and techniques associated with best practices.

Blood Culture Contamination Mitigation: Sustaining Success and Stewardship Systemwide

Background: False-positive blood cultures compromise care; extended stays, Clostridioides difficile risk increases and renal woes tagged to antibiotic alms contribute to the doubling of patient in-hospital mortality that is observed relative to true negative diagnostic results. False-positive affiliated central line-associated bloodstream infection reports can further obfuscate the quality of care provided. Between personnel performance pressures, laboratory resource losses and the risk for financial penalty under Value-Based Purchasing and Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Programs (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services), it becomes difficult to brush aside the burden of a non-zero blood culture contamination rate. Following unsuccessful and unsustainable endeavors that included educational exercise and waste tube employment, initial-specimen diversion devices designed to shift performance burdens from technicians to technology were co-opted in an effort to secure reliable blood culture contamination rate reductions. Methods: A 3.6% blood culture contamination rate was observed systemwide prior to intervention, which began in 2020. Among seventeen facilities that share a data system, twelve co-opted initial-specimen diversion device technology as the evidence-based anchor to a trifurcate intervention strategy that included value analysis and cultural curation. Results: The 2023 systemwide blood culture contamination rate was 1.95%; down from 2.8% in 2022 and 3.2% in 2021. The average cost per false-positive event was $2,111, with intervention amounting to systemwide savings of $4.1 million in 2023 as approximately 1,920 patients avoided false-positive incidents. Critical to year-over-year systemwide uptick in adoption of interventive technology was consistent and near real-time communication to caretakers regarding outcomes. Conclusion: The sustained success of the multifactorial solution showcased herein stems from the coupling of an evidence-based action with an ongoing assessment of value and communication channels carefully constructed to celebrate and perpetuate value observed. Layered uncertainties often cloud the crux of a multifactorial solution to a complex conundrum; for many decades the literature-supported solution to high blood culture contamination rates was to educate every person involved in every possible way. Only recently, following recommended practice revisions endorsed by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, did it become apparent nationwide that education alone was insufficient; some contaminant pathways persist without meticulously mechanical closure. Antimicrobial stewardship requires the respectful removal of adaptable pressures from microorganisms, but the inverse is equally important; by setting an ambitious systemwide blood culture contamination rate target of 1% or less, it is hoped that all facilities involved herein respond to this pressure with optimism, introspection and innovation.

Reducing Blood Culture Contamination Rates: Introduction of a Combined Education and Skin Antisepsis Intervention.

Background. Blood culture contamination (BCC) is an important quality concern in clinical microbiology as it can lead to unnecessary antimicrobial therapy in patients and increased workload for laboratory scientists. The Clinical Laboratory and Standards Institute recommend BCC rates to be <3 % and recently updated guidelines have set a new goal of 1 %. The aim of this project was to design and implement interventions to reduce BCC rates at our institution. Methods. We introduced a combined education and skin antisepsis intervention in a large Model 4 academic teaching hospital in the South of Ireland. BD ChloraPrep skin antisepsis applicators (2 % chlorhexidine gluconate/70 % isopropyl alcohol), licensed for use for blood culture specimen collection, were introduced, replacing Clinell (2 % chlorhexidine gluconate/70 % isopropyl alcohol) wipes. In addition, a multimodal education programme was designed and delivered. This consisted of a video demonstrating the recommended blood culture specimen collection technique using the new applicators as well as simulation training for all interns. The video was uploaded to the intranet as an educational resource available to all staff. Results. The interventions were implemented in July 2022 and BCC rates pre- and post-intervention were calculated. The average BCC rate for the 12 months preceding the intervention (July 2021 to July 2022) was 2.56 % with highest rates in the Emergency Department. This compared to an average rate of 2.2 % in the 12 months post-intervention (July 2022 to July 2023). In comparing the two rates the reduction in BCC rates between the two periods was not statistically significant (P=0.30). Conclusion. Overall BCC rates reduced but the difference between the two periods did not reach statistical significance. The resource-intensive nature of providing regular and timely feedback of contamination rates and the larger impact of in-person education and training over virtual modalities may explain the modest reduction. Further investments in these areas, particularly in the Emergency Department, will be necessary to further reduce rates in line with new recommendations.

Reduction of Colonizer and Contaminated Blood Culture in Emergency

Reduction of Colonizer and Contaminated Blood Culture in Emergency

16 Sociodemographic and Hospital-Level Characteristics Associated with Hospital-Onset Bacteremia in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

OBJECTIVES/GOALS: The primary objective is to measure the independent association of hospital-level and sociodemographic variables on the rate of hospital-onset bacteremia among infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit in a United States of America retrospective cohort. The secondary outcome will be relative blood culture collection rate. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: The study is an analysis of a retrospective cohort comprised of infants admitted to 322 neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in the United States of America between 2016-2021. The primary outcome will be hospital-onset bacteremia (HOB), defined as a positive blood culture with a bacteria or fungi after day 3 of admission. Independent risk factors will include birthweight, postnatal age, central venous catheter presence, sociodemographic variables (race, ethnicity, insurance status and ZIP code-level demographic data from the US Census American Community Survey (ACS), and hospital-level variables. Infants will be stratified by sociodemographic groups and a Poisson model will be utilized to measure the adjusted association between risk of HOB and clinical and hospital-level variables. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: I anticipate that infants in sociodemographic groups with a history of socioeconomic marginalization will have a higher unadjusted rate of HOB; however, sociodemographic variables will not be independently associated with HOB risk after adjusting for markers of hospital quality and acuity, such as quartiles of the following: mean admissions per year, percentage of infants born &lt;1500g, annual blood culture contamination rate, and percentage infants born at another facility. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Neonatal bacteremia has high morbidity and mortality; however, its contribution to known infant mortality inequities is unknown. This study will estimate the burden of infant HOB stratified by sociodemographic groups and measure the independent association of sociodemographic and hospital-level variables on the adjusted rate of HOB.

Traps and Tricks About A 6-Years Old Cutibacterium Endocarditis

Endocarditis of cardiac implanted electronic devices is a complex and serious disease. Commensal bacteria of the skin are commonly considered as contamination of blood culture. Herein, the authors report the case of a pacemaker endocarditis with cultures positive for Cutibacterium acnes. These were already found 3 and 6 years ago but not observed during hospitalisation. The PET-scan was of great help in guiding the diagnosis. The management was particularly difficult with 9 leads to extract. A sequential approach in the operating room from endovascular procedure to surgery under cardio-pulmonary bypass was used. A second procedure was necessary to extract a small forgotten foreign body already visible on the preoperative chest X-ray. This experience shows the importance of having a high level of suspicion in case of culture positive for Cutibacterium with intracardiac devices, and of looking for foreign bodies on the preoperative chest X-ray in case of a history of multiple rhythmological procedures.

Effectiveness of Multimodal Intervention to Improve Blood Culture Collection in a Tertiary Care Hospital.

Introduction and methods Blood culturing has become one of the backbone investigations for septicemia, fever of unknown origin, etc. This study was conducted to test the effect of multimodal interventions on the practical skills of healthcareworkers (HCWs), raise awareness regarding the importance of aseptic blood culture collection practices, and increase compliance with the specific steps to be followed. Hence, this current interventional study was aimed at comparing the rate of isolation of contaminants grown among the blood culture specimens, assessing the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of HCWscollecting the blood culture specimen on various aspects of sample collection, educating the nursing staff regarding blood sample collection using a structured, pre-formed checklist, and emphasizing best practices for blood culture collection. All of the study's objectives were successfully met within the time frame specified. Using a pre-formed checklist and a Google form for KAP analysis eased the calculation. Results On analysis, the blood culture contamination rate in the pre-interventional phase dropped drastically from 6.16% to 3.03% in the post-interventional phase. The educational sessions conducted are a paramount reason for the reduction in the contamination rate. The HCWs were the least compliant towards the eighth step in the checklist (regarding palpation of skin); however, that too increased from 66.93% and 64.51% to a whopping 82.25% and 83.06%, respectively, with a chi-squarevalue of 0.03 and a p-valueof 0.85 (not significant). Conclusion Implementation of interventional studies as an audit like this in tertiary care hospitals can result in a significant reduction in blood culture contamination rates and can also improve the compliance of HCWs with blood culture protocols. This, in turn, can overall improve the effectiveness of blood culture (BC) testing and reduce mortality and morbidity in tertiary care hospitals. Further research can be conducted to brainstorm more methods to increase the compliance of HCWs. Better monitoring strategies can also be set to ensure low contamination rates. Additionally, some other methods can be derived to locate the source of contamination within the hospital environment and thus eliminate it. Similar interventions can be conducted for a longer duration of time to further reduce the blood culture contamination rate below 3% (as per the recommendations).