Environmental surface sampling of SARS-CoV-2 in selected hospitals in Malaysia.

COVID-19 has spread rapidly worldwide. The role of fomites in facilitating onward transmission is plausible. This study aimed to determine the presence of viable virus and its persistence on the surfaces of fomites in wards treating COVID-19 patients in Malaysia. This study was conducted in two stages. First, environmental sampling was performed on random days in the intensive care unit (ICU) and general wards. Then, in the second stage, samples were collected serially on alternate days for 7 days in two selected general wards. In Stage 1, a total of 104 samples were collected from the surfaces of highly touched and used areas by patients and healthcare workers. Only three samples were tested positive for SARS-COV-2. In Stage 2, three surface samples were detected positive, but no persistence of the virus was observed. However, none of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA was viable through tissue culture. Overall, the environmental contamination of SARS-CoV-2 was low in this hospital setting. Hospitals' strict infection control and the compliance of patients with wearing masks may have played a role in these findings, suggesting adherence to those measures to reduce occupational exposure of COVID-19 in hospital settings.

Environmental surface sampling of SARS-CoV-2 in selected hospitals in Malaysia

@#COVID-19 has spread rapidly worldwide. The role of fomites in facilitating onward transmission is plausible. This study aimed to determine the presence of viable virus and its persistence on the surfaces of fomites in wards treating COVID-19 patients in Malaysia. This study was conducted in two stages. First, environmental sampling was performed on random days in the intensive care unit (ICU) and general wards. Then, in the second stage, samples were collected serially on alternate days for 7 days in two selected general wards. In Stage 1, a total of 104 samples were collected from the surfaces of highly touched and used areas by patients and healthcare workers. Only three samples were tested positive for SARS-COV-2. In Stage 2, three surface samples were detected positive, but no persistence of the virus was observed. However, none of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA was viable through tissue culture. Overall, the environmental contamination of SARS-CoV-2 was low in this hospital setting. Hospitals’ strict infection control and the compliance of patients with wearing masks may have played a role in these findings, suggesting adherence to those measures to reduce occupational exposure of COVID-19 in hospital settings.

Doppler-guided cannulation of the internal jugular vein: a prospective, randomized trial.

OBJECTIVES: The internal jugular vein (IJ) is commonly used as an access to the central venous system. Despite the high success rate for cannulation of the IJ, the incidence of complications (1% to 16%) has remained essentially the same, with most complications resulting from unintentional punctures of surrounding structures. In an attempt to reduce the complication rate of this technique, we evaluated the use of a Doppler-guided needle device to cannulate the IJ. METHODS: The study was performed on 41 patients scheduled for cardiothoracic or major vascular surgery requiring central vein cannulation as part of their anesthetic management. RESULTS: The number of needle advances in the Doppler group was 1.35 (SD 0.88) compared with 2.8 (SD 2.78) in the control group (p = 0.037). A significantly greater percentage of cannulations were successful on the first attempt in the Doppler group (85%), compared with the control group (55%) (95% CI for proportion = 0.3 to 0.57). CONCLUSION: The Doppler-guided cannulation technique can reduce the number of attempts required for successful IJ cannulation.