Pseudomonas and hygiene

Question

Dear expert team,
I know, that similar questions have already been asked several times before, in spite of this, I as a mother of a 15 year-old girl with CF, am again and again insecure when reading the newest recommendations concerning hygiene in daily life.
We have again a positive finding of Pseudomonas and I read again about all possible "sources to avoid" according to the guidelines from the 28th june 2012, what I have done so many times before.
What is still not clear to me is- what is the benefit of letting the water of the shower run and to quit the bathroom during that time when after that I take the shower gel for rinsing and it can contain Pseudomonas, what has already been attested.
I have already read, that the germ can survive also on dry things or surfaces for a certain time (how long?)- what is then the effect of drying the tooth brush- besides I have to use tooth paste- in which the germ has also already been detected.
Next example – how can one manage that the sponge for the dishes is always dry- is it effective to dry it in the microwave?
So, I am again and again completely insecure and I am of the opinion that out of fear one does things, that are simple – however there are many other situations that one does partly not take into account respectively that one cannot change and that are a thousand times more dangerous.
An example would be taking the bus respectively the car in the winter, especially when there is much snow, the carpets in the car respectively the floors in the bus are very wet- then the heating is running all the time and one has a real greenhouse climate.
Or also in hospital – of course patients with respectively without germs are separated- but if I have a germ once and one patient after the other has to be in the treating room respectively the lung function and I read, that germs can be detected in the surrounding air up to 3 hours, I can only say that I feel sick—that means if you have once a germ you can only pray that you will not get even more at the appointment for check-up.
I know that this sounds really hysterical, but I feel powerless and the more I read, the worse it gets.
Excuse the length of my remarks, but I believe most of the parents think like this.
Many thanks
I.D.

Answer

Hello,
I cannot find a real question, but will react to your “insecurity”. There is no “right” or “wrong”, but there is only an individual compromise out of the available information and what you make out of this for you and your daughter respectively what you daughter can make out of it herself.
In this, the threat from the problematic germ Pseudomonas is only one example for danger from outside. Not all that one knows is always transferred 100% into consequent action. Very often we decide for one consequence (take the bike for environmental reasons) and ignore the other (take the plane to go on holiday in spite of consequences for the environment). Like this it has to be with the knowledge about Pseudomonas – clarification should not be mixed up with the force to follow it – clarification creates the liberty, to decide one way or also another while having the knowledge of backgrounds.
For the problem of Pseudomonas this means: if one does not know anything, one makes mistakes for sure. If one knows a little, one can avoid the one or the other mistake, avoid the one or the other risk; now one has to determine, who should decide which risks one should avoid. Concerning Pseudomonas, there is such a broad spectrum of possibilities, and it would be dictation only to tell a part of it. The more information one has, the better one can weigh the risks and can decide oneself which risks one wants to take and which for sure not.
The fact that many persons concerned what to decide “theirselves”, makes it necessary to make all the confusing information transparent – only then the person concerned can make an “own” informed decision or also to say: can you please decide it for me?”
Then one will try to sort out with you – (or more with your daughter?) which risks are bigger and at the same time which situations are for the individual “more important” – so for which situations would he/she take a risk more easily.
Do not regard it so much as a threat – P. aeruginosa is everywhere – but as a chance of the own composition: my contribution for maintaining the status of health are the following precaution measures: first……that is like with the environment: one cannot make everything right, one should only try to make an own contribution.
For you and your daughter all the best,
Prof. Dr. TOF Wagner

04.03.2013