Infection From Intravenous Scalp-Vein Needles in a Susceptible Population

Intravenous indwelling scalp-vein needles were cultured in a population with neoplastic disease. Twenty-four of the 74 needles cultured were positive; microorganisms generally considered pathogenic grew from 7 of these needles. The latter organisms included Staphylococcus aureus , Pseudomonas aeruginosa , Candida albicans , α-hemolytic Streptococcus, and group D Streptococcus . Infected scalpvein needles were the bacteriologic source in one case of septicemia and one case of cellulitis. There was a trend toward increasing incidence of growth with increasing duration of needle placement.