Why should not bring flowers and balloons into the hospital

According to the Wall Street Journal, some medical facilities are tightening and limiting homeowners to bring flowers, plants and balloons into hospitals for reasons of infection risk and allergies.

Most intensive care units have banned the flowering of flowers into treatment areas for decades. Many hospitals now prohibit visitors from carrying rubber balloons to cardiology, pediatrics, and surgery departments .

New York University Langone Medical Center prohibits all types of balloons. New York Presbyterian Hospital, in addition to banning balloons, adds fresh, dried flowers and artificial toys from daycare, especially in areas where transplant patients and cancer patients are located. A spokesman said the policy was based on the Center's warnings warning against prevention to protect patients from immunosuppression and disease control.

Fresh or dried flowers, ornamental plants can damage the patient's immune system.(Photo: MEMORIAL SLOAN KETTERING CANCER CENTER).

According to the CDC, a case occurred in 1974, doctors suspected that a pathogen called Erwinia caused an infant to die of sepsis. Studies later found bacteria that caused the death of babies present in flower vases that were plugged into sick rooms. CDC warns, fresh or dried flowers, ornamental plants can damage the patient's immune system because they are a reservoir of dangerous bacteria and mold.

In addition, balloons are also a concern not only in hospitals. There were children choking on contact with balloons. This type of color toy is thought to have caused an increase in rubber allergies in recent years. CDC said, allergic reactions, from skin irritation to anaphylactic shock from life-threatening balloons of surgical patients and medical staff.

Maxine Simon, Executive Director, NYU Langone Medical Center, said balloons are not allowed to be in the patient care area, because they can be stuck in devices or create a barrier between patient and clinical team.

Susan Dolan, chairman of the Association for Infection and Epidemiology Control, representing more than 15,000 doctors working against medical infections, said infection control in hospitals should be strict. Patients may be at risk of infection, infection at any time. Therefore, items and toys that are at high risk of infection should be restricted to hospitals so that treatment for patients is guaranteed and safe.