This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Neely, A. N. Articles by Gottschlich, M. M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Neely, A. N. Articles by Gottschlich, M. M. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

A Microbiologic Study of Enteral Feeding Hang Time in a Burn Hospital: Can Feeding Costs be Reduced Without Compromising Patient Safety?

Alice N. Neely, PhD^*,,||
Theresa Mayes, RD
Jason Gardner, BS
Richard J. Kagan, MD^,||
Michele M. Gottschlich, PhD, RD^,¶

Departments of ^* Infection Control, Microbiology, Nutrition, and Medical Staff, Shriners Hospitals for Children;^|| Department of Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; and the ^¶ College of Allied Health Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio

Correspondence: Correspondence: Alice N. Neely, PhD, Chair, Infection Control Committee, Shriners Hospitals for Children, 3229 Burnet Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45229. Electronic mail may be sent to aneely{at}shrinenet.org.

Background: Procedural changes for hospitalized patients must always balance safety with fiscal constraints. Microbiologic contamination of enteral feeding solutions has been previously associated with nosocomial infections. Formula manipulation and hang time contribute to microbial load, and there is considerable variation in hang time recommendations in the medical literature. With cost containment in mind, the purpose of this performance improvement study was to determine if an increase in hang time of a modular tube feeding product would increase microbial load or affect the nosocomial infection rate in pediatric burn patients. Methods: This biphasic trial initially evaluated the microbial load of the feeding after delivery of two 4-hour aliquots into a container using the same delivery set (total hang time of 8 hours; number of tests = 20). Second, once this feeding procedure was deemed microbiologically safe, tube feedings were administered to patients, and both microbial load and nosocomial infection rate were monitored for 1 year. Results: Contamination levels at the end of the 8-hour period using the same feeding set with 2 consecutive 4-hour feeding aliquots (number of tests = 38) were lower than standard recommendations. The hospital's nosocomial infection rate was not altered by this procedural change, and feeding-set expenses were reduced. Conclusions: The hang time of our enteral feeding administration set can be increased safely from 4 hours to 8 hours, with the tube feeding preparation added as two 4-hour aliquots without a significant change in microbial load or nosocomial infection rate, thus promoting simultaneous fiscal responsibility and patient safety.

Nutrition in Clinical Practice, Vol. 21, No. 6, 610-616 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0115426506021006610


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				H. E. Skillman and P. E. Wischmeyer Nutrition Therapy in Critically Ill Infants and Children JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr, September 1, 2008; 32(5): 520 - 534. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. A. Roberts and E. Lyman Microbial Contamination of Enteral Feeding Sets Used in the Home of Pediatric Patients Nutr Clin Pract, February 1, 2008; 23(1): 85 - 89. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]