Repeated hot water and steam disinfection of Pari LC Plus® nebulizers alter nebulizer output

Currently, cystic fibrosis patients require daily nebulized treatments to achieve optimal lung health. Growth of pathogenic bacteria in patient nebulizers is well known, and disinfection guidelines have been established. In this short communication, we sought to discover what effect, if any, repeate...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of cystic fibrosis 2019-03, Vol.18 (2), p.233-235
Main Authors: Collins, Melanie Sue, O'Brien, Matthew, Schramm, Craig M., Murray, Thomas S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cleaning
Cystic fibrosis
Disinfection
Home nebulizer
Steam sterilization
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Summary:Currently, cystic fibrosis patients require daily nebulized treatments to achieve optimal lung health. Growth of pathogenic bacteria in patient nebulizers is well known, and disinfection guidelines have been established. In this short communication, we sought to discover what effect, if any, repeated nebulization/disinfection cycles had on nebulizer output. We nebulized saline repeatedly after exposure to boiling water, steam, and alcohol disinfection methods. While alcohol disinfection did not affect nebulizer output, boiling water and steam significantly decreased nebulizer output from baseline, 74.1 ± 5.9% (p = 0.022) and steam 63.6 ± 6.5% (p = 0.0048) after 60 cycles respectively. This decrease in nebulizer output could significantly increase the duration of nebulizer treatment time and negatively impact the burden of care on patients with cystic fibrosis.
ISSN:1569-1993
1873-5010
DOI:10.1016/j.jcf.2018.08.005