Abstract：
BACKGROUND: The stethoscope is the most widely used instrument in healthcare. Studies have found similar rates of contamination on the stethoscope diaphragm and on physician fingertips after a single examination. Our aim was to test the effectiveness of an innovative portable device for disinfecting stethoscope membranes.
METHODS: From November 2016 to May 2017, a cross-sectional study was conducted in four wards of a private clinic: General Ward (GW), Internal Medicine Ward (IMW), Post-Operative Observation Ward (POW) and Permanent Vegetative State Ward (PVSW). Five wearable medical devices, designed to disinfect stethoscope membranes automatically by means of UV-C radiation, were provided to operators. Spot checks were made for microbial counts of stethoscope membranes, classified as treated or otherwise on the basis of whether they were found coupled or otherwise with the devices. The percentage reduction in colony forming units (CFU) was calculated between the two groups.
RESULTS: The number of tests of stethoscopes treated with the device was 116 out of 272. Untreated samples had a mean contamination of 132.2 CFU versus 6.9 CFU of treated samples: a 94.8% reduction (95% CI 91.3%-97.7). Highly significant statistical differences in CFU were found between untreated and treated membranes (p < 0.001). In particular, microbial contamination showed a reduction of 88.7% (CI 77.5%-96.05%) in PVSW, 95.9% (CI 88.2%-98.5%) in GW, 84.5% (CI 76.4%-90.5%) in IMW and 95.8% (CI 90.3%-98.1%) in POW.
CONCLUSIONS: The devices proved effective and efficient in reducing the microbial load of stethoscope membranes. Wearing the device on the coat may act as a reminder of the need for hygiene.
METHODS: From November 2016 to May 2017, a cross-sectional study was conducted in four wards of a private clinic: General Ward (GW), Internal Medicine Ward (IMW), Post-Operative Observation Ward (POW) and Permanent Vegetative State Ward (PVSW). Five wearable medical devices, designed to disinfect stethoscope membranes automatically by means of UV-C radiation, were provided to operators. Spot checks were made for microbial counts of stethoscope membranes, classified as treated or otherwise on the basis of whether they were found coupled or otherwise with the devices. The percentage reduction in colony forming units (CFU) was calculated between the two groups.
RESULTS: The number of tests of stethoscopes treated with the device was 116 out of 272. Untreated samples had a mean contamination of 132.2 CFU versus 6.9 CFU of treated samples: a 94.8% reduction (95% CI 91.3%-97.7). Highly significant statistical differences in CFU were found between untreated and treated membranes (p < 0.001). In particular, microbial contamination showed a reduction of 88.7% (CI 77.5%-96.05%) in PVSW, 95.9% (CI 88.2%-98.5%) in GW, 84.5% (CI 76.4%-90.5%) in IMW and 95.8% (CI 90.3%-98.1%) in POW.
CONCLUSIONS: The devices proved effective and efficient in reducing the microbial load of stethoscope membranes. Wearing the device on the coat may act as a reminder of the need for hygiene.
摘要：
背景：听诊器是医疗保健中使用最广泛的仪器。研究发现，一次检查后，听诊器隔膜和医生指尖的污染率相似。我们的目的是测试一种创新的便携式设备对听诊器膜进行消毒的有效性。
方法：从2016年11月至2017年5月，在一家私人诊所的四个病房进行了横断面研究：普通病房（GW），内科病房（IMW），术后观察病房（POW）和永久植物州病房（PVSW）。五种可穿戴医疗设备，设计用于通过UV-C辐射自动消毒听诊器膜，提供给运营商。对听诊器膜的微生物计数进行了抽查，根据是否发现它们与设备耦合或以其他方式分类。计算两组之间菌落形成单位(CFU)的减少百分比。
结果：使用该设备治疗的听诊器的测试数量为272个中的116个。未处理样品的平均污染为132.2CFU,而处理样品的平均污染为6.9CFU:减少94.8%(95%CI91.3%-97.7%)。在未处理和处理的膜之间发现CFU的高度显著的统计学差异(p<0.001)。特别是,PVSW的微生物污染减少了88.7%（CI77.5%-96.05%），95.9%（CI88.2%-98.5%），以GW计，IMW为84.5%（CI76.4%-90.5%），POW为95.8%（CI90.3%-98.1%）。
结论：这些设备被证明在减少听诊器膜的微生物负荷方面是有效的。将该装置戴在外套上可以作为对卫生的需要的提醒。
方法：从2016年11月至2017年5月，在一家私人诊所的四个病房进行了横断面研究：普通病房（GW），内科病房（IMW），术后观察病房（POW）和永久植物州病房（PVSW）。五种可穿戴医疗设备，设计用于通过UV-C辐射自动消毒听诊器膜，提供给运营商。对听诊器膜的微生物计数进行了抽查，根据是否发现它们与设备耦合或以其他方式分类。计算两组之间菌落形成单位(CFU)的减少百分比。
结果：使用该设备治疗的听诊器的测试数量为272个中的116个。未处理样品的平均污染为132.2CFU,而处理样品的平均污染为6.9CFU:减少94.8%(95%CI91.3%-97.7%)。在未处理和处理的膜之间发现CFU的高度显著的统计学差异(p<0.001)。特别是,PVSW的微生物污染减少了88.7%（CI77.5%-96.05%），95.9%（CI88.2%-98.5%），以GW计，IMW为84.5%（CI76.4%-90.5%），POW为95.8%（CI90.3%-98.1%）。
结论：这些设备被证明在减少听诊器膜的微生物负荷方面是有效的。将该装置戴在外套上可以作为对卫生的需要的提醒。
