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Comment
. 2025 Oct 8;63(10):e0098125.
doi: 10.1128/jcm.00981-25. Epub 2025 Sep 5.

Standardized surveillance of blood culture contamination rates: moving toward a universal standard

Fizza Manzoor  1   2 , Sarah E Turbett  1   2   3
Affiliations
Comment

Standardized surveillance of blood culture contamination rates: moving toward a universal standard

Fizza Manzoor et al. J Clin Microbiol. .

Abstract

Blood culture contamination (BCC) is a major healthcare challenge with no standardized process to monitor and report rates by individual healthcare facilities in the United States. A new study by V. Fabre, Y.- J. Hsu, K. C. Caroll, A. M. Milstone, et al. (J Clin Microbiol 63:e0053025, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1128/jcm.00530-25) characterizes blood culture contamination rates, surveillance methods, reporting practices, and preventative strategies across 52 centers in the United States. The study highlights a need for standardized surveillance metrics and target thresholds within and across hospitals to help facilitate accurate benchmarking, provide feedback on existing processes, support antimicrobial and diagnostic stewardship efforts, and allocate resources to reduce BCC events.

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Conflict of interest statement

SET has received royalties from UpToDate and has performed sponsored research with SeLux Diagnsotics. She has served as a consultant for CarbX. FM declares no conflict of interest.

Comment on

  • Multicenter evaluation of blood culture contamination and blood cultures practices in US acute care hospitals: time for standardization.
    Fabre V, Hsu Y-J, Carroll KC, Milstone AM, Salinas AB, Abbo LM, Bower C, Berry J, Boyd S, Degnan KO, Dhaubhadel P, Diekema DJ, Dress M, Feeser B, Fisher M, Flynn C, Ford BA, Gettler EB, Glasser LJ, Howard-Anderson J, Johnson JK, Karaba SM, Kim JJ, Kubischta A, Landrum BM, Martinez M, Mathers AJ, Mermel L, Moehring RW, O'Horo JC, Pepe DE, Qasba SS, Rittmann B, Robinson ED, Rodríguez-Nava G, Rosa R, Ryder JH, Salinas JL, Shah A, Schrank GM, Shelly M, Spivak ES, Stewart KO, Talbot TR, Van Schooneveld TC, Wasylyshyn A, Gadala A, Virk Z, Cosgrove SE. Fabre V, et al. J Clin Microbiol. 2025 Aug 13;63(8):e0053025. doi: 10.1128/jcm.00530-25. Epub 2025 Jul 11. J Clin Microbiol. 2025. PMID: 40643261 Free PMC article.

References

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