American journal of infection control
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 1999
Comparative StudyWorst-case soiling levels for patient-used flexible endoscopes before and after cleaning.
The soiling levels of patient-used narrow-lumened flexible endoscopes were assessed for bronchoscopes, duodenoscopes, and colonoscopes. The effect of cleaning on the soil composition and concentration was evaluated. ⋯ These data demonstrated that cleaning effectively reduced or eliminated many components of soil, but a substantial amount of viable bacteria and protein remained. Hemoglobin levels in before samples indicated that blood was not present in high concentrations in the suction channels of the majority of flexible endoscope samples. Soil that mimics the worst-case composition from patient-used endoscopes would be ideal for simulated-use studies for such medical devices.