Heart surgery patients at Manitoba hospital warned of risk of infection

WINNIPEG — More than 4,300 adults who have had open-heart surgery at the St. Boniface Hospital in Winnipeg since 2012 are being notified about potential infection.

“The overall risk to patients is very low and we have not received any reports of infections here in Manitoba,” Dr. Rakesh Arora, a cardiac surgeon with the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority said Monday.

Arora said a device used to heat and cool blood during surgery has been linked to an infection caused by a non-tuberculosis mycobacteria.

Patients are being sent letters advising them of the risk and letting them know who to contact should they have any questions or concerns.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States estimates the risk to be less than 1 per cent.

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In October 2015 the CDC issued a warning to health providers on the need for increased vigilance for such infections.

The device is used in hospitals across Canada, as well as the United States and Europe.

It is strongly suspected the bacteria was present in the equipment during manufacturing, but was not detected at the time.

“It is not uncommon for these devices to get contaminated,” Arora said. 

“It is difficult to know if your machine is infected or not, so there is a deep cleaning procedure that we are using to help minimize any risk with the device.”

The heating-cooling devices are essential to performing open-heart  surgeries. 

The bacteria is commonly found in the environment and rarely causes complications. The infection grows very slowly and is difficult to diagnose. In some cases, patients can develop symptoms months or even years after surgery.

Health officials say the infection is not contagious and cannot be spread person to person.

There is no screening test to see if patients have been exposed during surgery. The infection is not detectable unless symptoms develop.

“Individuals who have had open heart surgery should contact their family physician if they are experiencing the following symptoms: night sweats; muscle aches; weight loss; fatigue; unexplained fever; and redness, heat, or pus around the sternal surgical incision,” the Winnipeg health region said. 

The devices at St. Boniface Hospital are being tested for the bacteria and the health region said it is following all new recommendations from the manufacturer to reduce the risk of infection.

The Canadian Press