Bacterial contamination of hospital-prepared enteral tube feeding formulas in Kerman, Iran

Background: Blenderized feedings continue to be used in most parts of Iran, mostly due to economic and cultural reasons. The most important problem of this kind of food is bacterial contamination. Materials and Methods: 54 samples were taken at the first and the last time of their giving to patients from blenderized food. Furthermore, 10 samples were collected from the commercial brand Fresubin® in the same way. Samples were brought to the laboratory and analyzed for the presence of some microbial pathogens. Results: Citrobacter diversus, Enterobacter cloacae, E.coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Proteus sp, Klebsiella oxytoca, Hafnia alvei, Serratia sp, Shigella sonnei were identified from blenderized feeding. The mean bacterial contamination of 54 samples that were collected from 3 intensive care units was 5/5×106 CFU/ml. Bacterial contamination of commercial food was obtained less than 1 organism/ml. According to these results, there are significant differences between these foods. Commercial foods are the best choice for feeding patients in the hospital. Conclusion: The results indicated that a majority of the blenderized enteral tube feedings in those hospitals are not safe. In comparison to the standard limits, these enteral tube feedings are highly contaminated and pose a substantial risk of developing a foodborne disease or nosocomial infection.