Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteremia secondary to fingerstick glucose monitoring

Accepted 17 December 2009. published online 15 January 2010.

Summary

Routine fingersticks for blood glucose monitoring are essential for the management of diabetic patients. However, the development of infections following fingersticks is a potential complication of blood glucose monitoring that has been reported in the literature. We describe a case of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteremia introduced during a routine fingerstick for blood glucose monitoring in a febrile neutropenic patient.

Keywords: Pseudomonas infections, Blood glucose self-monitoring, Neutropenia, Diabetes mellitus

a The University Hospital, Pharmaceutical Care Division, 150 Bergen Street, UH B134, Newark, NJ 07101-1709, USA

b State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, 445 Lenox Road Box 36, Brooklyn, NY 11203, USA

c Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy, Long Island University, 75 Dekalb Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA

d State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, 450 Clarkson Avenue Box 1240, Brooklyn, NY 11203, USA

Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 (973) 972 1250; fax: +1 (973) 972 7841.

PII: S0163-4453(09)00395-8

doi:10.1016/j.jinf.2009.12.011

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