First Aid for Laboratory Infections

LABORATORY PROCEDURES FOR PLANT CELL LINES

Appendix

PC/1998/1/7 Appendix 2

«First Aid» after Microbial Infections
(Taken and translated from: Burkhardt: Mikrobiologische Diagnostik)

After any microbial infection in the laboratory a medical doctor has to be contacted immediately. The following statements should be taken only as guidelines and should not replace professional help:
All equipment necessary for «First Aid» has to be stored in each laboratory a separate container which has to be clearly marked and which has to be deposited in a dry, cool and clean place which is all the time accessible for all workers of the laboratory.

Mouth: Never Swallow ! Spit ! Wash !

1. Infectious material has got into the mouth but has not yet been swallowed
Spit immediately. After spitting wash the mouth and gargle first with freshly made 0.1% KMnO4 solution and afterwards with 1% H2O2 solution. Avoid swallowing. Spit afterwards. Afterwards stimulate the acid production of the stomach by eating meat extract. Repeat washing of the mouth and gargling several times during some hours after the infection.
2. Infectious material has been swallowed
Short but strong washing of the mouth and gargling with freshly made 0.01% KMnO4 solution. Afterwards stimulate the acid production of the stomach by eating meat extract and taking pharmaceutical preparations containing pepsin and/or hydrochloric acid.

Eye: Do not Rub !

3. Infectious material has got into the eye
Wash the eye and the conjunctival sap with a solution of 0.0001 % of oxycanate (open the lid and drop the solution into the eye repeatedly). Apply a salve containing an antibiotic which is usually used to attack the contaminating microbe.
Microbes may move through the tear passages into the mouth. Therefore afterwards follow the guidelines described under topic 1 (mouth) and perform all steps described there.

Nose: Blow you Nose strongly ! Breathe through the Mouth !

4. Infectious material has got into the nose

Blow your nose repeatedly strongly into cellulose paper or something similar. Avoid inhaling through the nose (inhale through the mouth, close the mouth and blow the nose strongly). Apply an oxycyanate containing salve or solution into the nose.
Perform afterwards the steps described under topic 1.

Skin: Let open Wounds bleed for a while ! Disinfect any Wound !

5. Any injury or damage of the skin by infected instruments, by bites or scrapes of infected or healthy animals, contamination of skin wounds with infectious material.
Disinfect surface scratches of the skin immediately with tincture of iodine. Afterwards clean the surroundings of the wound, swap with cotton and disinfect the wound again with tincture of iodine and cover it with a protective bandage.
Let a wound from a prick or stab bleed for a while. Disinfect the puncture with tincture of iodine. Afterwards cover the puncture with a protective bandage.
Let a strongly bleeding cut bleed for a while. Disinfect then the surroundings of the wound (not the wound itself) with tincture of iodine. Protect the wound then with a protective bandage.

Special Infections
By injuries with instruments contaminated with the blood of patients (danger of Hepatitis B or AIDS), or by contaminations of a wound with anthrax, rabies, Pseudomonas mallei, Tetanus (Clostridium tetani) or Clostridium perfringens or other extremely dangerous microbes the contaminating agents have to be killed immediately in the wound. Therefore in these cases the wound itself should be treated directly with tincture of iodine as far as possible. Afterwards a hospital has to be contacted directly and immediately.

After any injury, the injured limb has to be immobilized for 24 hours.

Guidelines prepared for CABRI by DSMZ, 20 Jan. 1998
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Copyright CABRI, 1998

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