A nosocomial common source outbreak caused by pseudomonas pickettii

Pseudomonas pickettii, a Gram-negative bacillus which has been recovered rarely from clinical specimens, was isolated from the respiratory tracts of 9 of 29 (31 %) pediatric intensive care unit patients. The reservoir of the organism was intrinsically contaminated single dose vials of tracheal irrigant solution. Four additional hospitals in three other states have notified the Centers for Disease Control of respiratory colonization with aerobic nonfermentative Gram-negative organisms and have associated this colonization with the use of the same tracheal irrigant solution. Because of the potential for intrinsic contamination, single dose vials must be added to the list of potentially hazardous environmental agents.