Free Republic

In an ominous sign for patient safety, 71% of reusable medical scopes deemed ready for use on patients tested positive for bacteria at three major U.S. hospitals, according to a new study. The paper, published recently in the American Journal of Infection Control, underscores the infection risk posed by a commonly used endoscopes. It signals a lack of progress by manufacturers, hospitals and regulators in reducing contamination despite numerous reports of superbug outbreaks and patient deaths, experts say. "These results are pretty scary," said Janet Haas, president of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. "These are very...

Olympus Corp., whose specialized medical scopes are among those linked to a series of deadly "superbug" outbreaks around the country, said Friday that it will voluntarily recall and redesign the devices in an effort to prevent future infections. The company produces the vast majority of duodenoscopes used in the United States, followed by two other firms, Pentax and Fujifilm. The devices are used in hundreds of thousands of procedures annually in this country to drain fluids from pancreatic and bile ducts blocked by tumors, gallstones and other conditions. But in recent years, they also have been linked to numerous outbreaks...