Microbiologic contamination study of nebulizers after aerosol therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis

Background: To evaluate the contamination of delivery systems after an aerosol therapy session in patients with cystic fibrosis who have chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection. Methods: Fifty-three patients with cystic fibrosis were enrolled in the study from March 1996 to June 1997. All patients were age 7 years or older and had P aeruginosa infection. They also had been treated with recombinant desoxyribonuclease and were capable of producing sputum for culture. Results: Nine devices were excluded for the study. A total of 44 nebulizers were included: 37 from patients with P aeruginosa colonization with a count of 106 colony-forming units/mL or more and 7 with a count of between 105 colony-forming units/mL and 106 colony-forming units/mL. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that in the absence of cleaning, nebulizers of patients with cystic fibrosis who are infected with P aeruginosa are likely to be contaminated by a pathogenic flora.