Bactericidal Properties of the Concentrated Artificial Kidney Bath Solution
AUTOR(ES)
Bower, John D.
RESUMO
This study was undertaken to investigate the ability of a 30 times concentrated dialysate fluid to support or inhibit growth of bacteria, and to evaluate its shelf life. The solution was inoculated with the following organisms in the logarithmic-growth phase: Escherichia coli, coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus, enteric Streptococcus sp., Pseudomonas sp., Klebsiella-Aerobacter sp., Proteus sp., and Bacillus subtilis. Inoculated concentrate held at 37 C showed an exponential decrease in organisms for all species except B. subtilis, with no organisms recoverable at 24 hr. To determine the effects of temperature, solution inoculated with E. coli and S. aureus was kept at 4 and 20 C. Lesser rates of bacterial decline were found at the lower temperatures, with some organisms surviving for 146 hr at 4 C. For the evaluation of shelf life, 2 liters of the solution was kept at room temperature in screw-cap bottles for 8 months; no bacterial growth occurred. The self-sterilizing property of this solution is important practically, since it removes another source of contamination from patients with reduced resistance to infection due to chronic renal disease or immunosuppressive therapy for renal homotransplantation.
