Bacterial Contamination of Children's Soap Bubbles

McGarrity, Gerard J.

doi:10.1001/archpedi.1973.04160020056010

Cited by 5 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…manufacturers that were tested in this investigation revealed contamination with bacteria, yeast, and/or fungus. These data replicate the study of McGarrity and Coriell (1973) and suggest that some soap bubble solutions are being contaminated intrinsically during the manufacturing process. The infection control literature also has shown that soaps and disinfectants can become extrinsically contaminated due to handling of the products in a nonaseptic manner.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Both bottles yielded “no growth” for bacteria, yeast, and fungi. This is consistent with the findings of McGarrity and Coriell (1973), who tested several brands of no‐tear shampoo, as well as liquid dishwasher and laundry detergents, for bacterial counts and found no gross contamination.…”

Section: Investigation and Findingssupporting

confidence: 91%

“…Various products, measurements, and mixtures were tested to identify a solution that was relatively easy to make and also produced quality bubbles. No‐tear shampoo testing results by McGarrity and Coriell (1973) and in‐house testing results that indicated that the Johnson & Johnson's No More Tears Baby Shampoo had no growth by standard culture methods prompted the use of this solution in the recipe that was chosen. This recipe also used Sterile Water for Irrigation–USP, and glycerol.…”

Section: Alternative Bubble Productsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Contaminated soaps and disinfectants have specifically been implicated in outbreaks associated with healthcare settings (Archibald et al., 1997; Ehrenkranz, Bolyard, Wiener, & Cleary, 1980; Wishart & Riley, 1976) due to contamination in the mixing process, refilling of dispensers, or environmental contamination of the product. McGarrity and Coriell (1973) tested brands of soap bubble solutions commonly used in hospitals. Various gram‐positive and gram‐negative organisms were detected but the most common organism, Pseudomonas aeruginosa , was detected in 90% of the samples tested.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Dolan

Eberhart²,

James

2006

Specialist Pediatric Nursing

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Investigation and Findingssupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Alternative Bubble Productsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Dolan

Eberhart²,

James

2006

Specialist Pediatric Nursing

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“…A similar mechanism was suggested several years ago. 36 Most plausibly, manufacture uses water that is already contaminated by bacteria. Probably, manufacturing plants are drawing water from a contaminated source and use it for soap bubble production, without performing any precautionary disinfection.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Child toy safety: An interdisciplinary approach to unravel the microbiological hazard posed by soap bubbles

Amoruso

Bertoncello

Caravello

et al. 2015

J Public Health Pol

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In 2012 some children developed sepsis after playing together with a soap bubble toy. Microbiological testing revealed heavy contamination of the soap solution, which reasonably represented the vehicle of infection. We investigated the issue with a multidisciplinary approach: review of toy safety legislation; microbiological testing of additional samples; query of the RAPEX database for non-compliant soap bubbles; identification of major manufacturing districts. Microbiological contamination of industrial soap bubbles was widespread. Sixty-three notifications of batches contaminated by environmental microorganisms and opportunistic pathogens had been reported. The Chinese had a virtual monopoly of the soap bubble market. We identified two main manufacturing districts in Guangdong Province, both notable for degradation of their water resources. The use of untreated water for the industrial production of soap bubbles may explain the bacterial contamination. Existing legislation provides an unsatisfactory approach for managing microbiological hazards in sensitive toy categories and for identifying responsible parties in import and export of the products.

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An Italian survey on the microbiological safety of toys containing aqueous media

Briancesco

Paduano

Paradiso

et al. 2022

Journal of Applied Microbiology

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Aims:The purpose of the present investigation is to fill the current gap in information regarding the microbiological quality of toys containing aqueous media and the related risks for users.Methods: Over 18 years, a total of 491 sealed toys containing aqueous media were analysed using conventional microbial culture methods. In addition, molecular methods (PCR/nested RT-PCR, followed by Sanger sequencing) were employed to test for enteric viruses (enteroviruses and adenoviruses) in a subset of toys; subsequently, the infectivity of the positive samples was tested on cell cultures.Results: Of the examined toys, 23.8% were noncompliant with the limits of the European guideline. The most frequently exceeded limits were those for Aerobic bacteria (84.6%), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (29.9%). Other opportunistic bacterial species that were frequently detected were Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Burkholderia cepacia, Sphingomonas paucimobilis and Comamonas acidovorans. In a subset of 28 samples, adenovirus (25%) and enterovirus (11%) genome was also found to be present, although the samples with viral positivity did not show infectivity after inoculation on appropriate cell monolayers. Conclusions:The results indicate a condition of microbial exposure related to the use of toys containing aqueous media. Significance and Impact of Study:The investigation highlights the need for more stringent monitoring during the production, packaging and storage of toys containing aqueous matrices in order to safeguard children's health.

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Bacterial Contamination of Children's Soap Bubbles

Cited by 5 publications

References 10 publications

Ask the Expert

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Child toy safety: An interdisciplinary approach to unravel the microbiological hazard posed by soap bubbles

An Italian survey on the microbiological safety of toys containing aqueous media

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