IS MY STETHOSCOPE HARMLESS? : OPERATING ROOM STETHOSCOPES UNDER MICROSCOPES

Medical equipment especially stethoscopes, are increasingly responsible for healthcare-associated infections. The objective of our work is to establish the prevalence of bacteria carried by stethoscopes among anesthesia doctors in the operating roomof the Mohammed V Military Teaching Hospital. This was a prospective prevalence study carried out over a period of 2 months on 10 stethoscopes showing that 90% of the stethoscopes collected were infected. The average number of CFU / membrane was estimated at 3.1x10⁴. This number has clearly been reduced 172 times after disinfection. This study suggests that awareness and the use of hydro alcoholic solutions to disinfect stethoscopes can significantly reducebacterial carriage and infections.