In questo studio si è valutato quale effetto abbia sulla contaminazione del campo operatorio il fatto che il paziente o il chirurgo parlino durante l’esecuzione delle iniezioni intravitreali. È risultato un aumento significativo della contaminazione batterica, che si riduce se si indossa la mascherina chirurgica. La contaminazione batterica è aumentata dalla posizione sdraiata che si tiene sul lettino operatorio. Per ridurre il tanto temuto rischio di infezione, è decisamente meglio evitare di parlare durante i pochi minuti della procedura.

Archives of Ophthalmology
Bacterial Dispersal Associated With Speech in the Setting of Intravitreous Injections

Joanne C. Wen, MD; Colin A. McCannel, MD; A. Brian Mochon, PhD; Omai B. Garner, PhD

Archives of Ophthalmology
December 2011, Vol 129, No. 12, 1551-1554.


Methods  Fifteen volunteers were recruited. Each volunteer was positioned over an open blood agar plate and did the following: read a 5-minute script with a face mask, read a 5-minute script without a face mask, read a 5-minute script with the face turned away from the plate without a face mask, and stood in silence for 5 minutes. Each volunteer then read a 5-minute script while reclined in a standard ophthalmic examination chair with an open blood agar plate secured to the forehead to simulate bacterial dispersal associated with a talking patient. Total numbers of colony-forming bacteria per plate were counted, and the bacteria were identified.

Results  Significantly less bacterial growth occurred in the face mask and silence conditions compared with the no face mask condition (both P < .001). Bacterial growth was significantly greater in the reclined condition compared with the room control (P = .02). Oral streptococcal species represented 66.7% to 82.6% of bacterial colonies in the no face mask, face turned, and reclined conditions.

Conclusions  During simulated intravitreous injection, wearing a face mask or remaining silent significantly decreases culture plate contamination from talking. Talking from above and talking in the reclined position were associated with a significant increase in culture plate contamination. Physicians performing intravitreous injections should be aware of these patterns of bacterial contamination, should consider either wearing a face mask or minimizing speech, and should encourage patients to minimize speech during the procedure.