Stethoscopes carried by ambulance crews may be exposing patients to a deadly strain of drug-resistant bacteria, a new study finds.
The common medical devices may not be cleaned as often as necessary to prevent spreading methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, bacteria also known as MRSA that are resistant to many antibiotics, according to a new report from Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Jersey. MRSA, long found in hospitals and other healthcare facilities, has recently been increasingly found outside hospitals in areas including locker rooms, jails, military barracks, and other areas where many people are in close physical contact.
Officials are working to limit the spread of MRSA, which is becoming increasingly resistant to drugs used to treat it.
New Jersey Ambulance Crews Examined
Researchers focused on New Jersey ambulance crews bringing patients into an emergency room. The crews were asked the last time they cleaned their stethoscopes and the instruments were tested for bacteria.
Of 50 stethoscopes tested, 16 had MRSA. In most cases, a simple alcohol swab rubbed on the stethoscope is enough to kill the bacteria according to the researchers. Many of the ambulance crew members could not remember the last time they cleaned their stethoscopes.
