Abstract
We examined a cluster of 5 hemodialysis patients who contracted gram-negative bacteremia. A nurse who used an artificial fingernail to open a vial of heparin that was mixed to make a flush solution had a culture of an artificial fingernail specimen positive for Serratia marcescens. The typing of the S. marcescens strains isolated from the 5 patients and the nurse showed them to be identical. This finding provides strong support for policies prohibiting artificial nails for healthcare workers in all hemodialysis units.
MeSH terms
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Bacteremia / microbiology
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Bacteremia / transmission*
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Beauty Culture
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Cross Infection / microbiology
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Cross Infection / transmission*
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DNA Fingerprinting
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Hand Disinfection / methods
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Humans
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Infection Control / methods
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Infectious Disease Transmission, Professional-to-Patient / methods*
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Infectious Disease Transmission, Professional-to-Patient / prevention & control
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Infusions, Intravenous / adverse effects
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Nails / microbiology*
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Nursing Staff
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Renal Dialysis / adverse effects*
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Serratia Infections / microbiology
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Serratia Infections / prevention & control
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Serratia Infections / transmission*
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Serratia marcescens / isolation & purification*