P07.12 Infection control in bone & joint surgery: do surgeons contribute in transmitting infections during operations?

transmission have not been fully clarified and reprocessing procedures of certain medical devices need to be critically reviewed. We set up a study comprising three series of testing colonocsopes for C. diff spores. Methods: During a period of 24 months, rinse-water-samples from colonoscopes-channels were taken and specifically tested for C. diff spores using different testing methods including enrichment techniques. For this investigation a department of internal medicine with a high incidence-density of CDI-cases was chosen (3.3 cases/1000 patient days in 2008). Results: First series: All 6 samples were proven negative for C. diff . Second series: One scope was tested positively for C. diff before being reprocessed with two testing methods and confirmed by the national reference laboratory as PCR-ribotype 402. After reprocessing (disinfection with peracetic acid) this scope showed negative results with both testing methods. The other three colonoscopes produced negative results for Cdiff before and after reprocessing. Third series: All seven colonoscopes showed negative results for C. diff before and after reprocessing, conventionally tested as well as with two different enrichment methods. Conclusions: It can be stated that if following the European/International guidelines (EN ISO 15883-4 which regulates the reprocessing procedure in automated disinfectors – disinfecting performance of the machine is measured by E. faecium 10 to the 9th for channel – and outer disinfection) and if well trained staff adheres to these, the risk of transmission of C. diff spores in endoscopy units is low.