Bacterial presence on flexible endoscopes vs time since disinfection

Figure 1 Percentage of negative cultures obtained for all endoscopes throughout the test period. The large percentage of negative cultures is consistent from 1 to 7 d of hang time and between the different types of scopes.ERCP: Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography.

Figure 2 Percentage of positive cultures obtained for all endoscopes throughout the test period. ERCP: Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography.

Figure 3 Number of positive culture samples at each level of colony forming units for each endoscope type, where the number of negative cultures for gastroscopes was 67 (n = 73), for colonoscopes 67 (n = 78) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography scopes was 12 (n = 14). ERCP: Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography.