Wipes help cut MRSA transmission

by | Jul 27, 2012

Daily use of antimicrobial wipes combined with standard bathing helped one facility cut its methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus transmission rate by 82%, a study found.

At the start of a study in one 27-bed post-acute care unit, investigators observed an average MRSA transmission rate of 4.99 cases per 1,000 patient days. Investigators then introduced disposable wipes treated with the antimicrobial chlorhexidine gluconate as a standard of care in daily bathing regimes.

The study presents โ€œa potentially promising intervention to reduce MRSA transmission and improve patient safety as part of an overall bundle of infection prevention strategies as identified by a facility’s infection risk assessment,โ€ said Michelle Farber, RN, an Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology official.

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