Bacterial Contamination during Continuous Administration of Liquid Enteral Nutrition Formula in a Sterile Sealed Bag: A Prospective Interventional Study

Abstract

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> In nutrition therapy for critically ill patients, it is recommended that enteral nutrition (EN) formula be changed every 8 h to avoid bacterial contamination. However, it remains unknown whether long-term administration of EN formula from a sterile sealed bag without changing the formula can cause bacterial contamination. This study investigates the association between bacterial contamination and administration of liquid EN formula from a sterile sealed bag without changing the formula for 24 h. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> This single-center, prospective, interventional study included patients aged ≥20 years who were admitted to an intensive care unit and received 24-h continuous liquid EN formula from a sterile sealed bag. A 3-mL sample of the formula was collected from each bag every 4 h for bacterial culture. The primary outcome was the detection of bacterial colonies. <b><i>Results:</i></b> A total of 630 specimens from 30 patients were cultured. No bacterial colonies were detected. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> There was no association between bacterial contamination and continuous administration of liquid EN formula from a sterile sealed bag for 24 h. Therefore, this study recommends continuous administration of EN from a sterile sealed bag for 24 h without changing the EN formula under those limited conditions.