Mysterious Residue Halts Surgeries at Aurora VA Medical Center

In early May, The Denver Post reported that the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center in Aurora, Colo. had halted surgeries due to a “mysterious residue” appearing on its sterilized equipment.

A June 17 article from The Denver Post says that the medical center still has not been able to identify the residue.

436 surgical cases and 103 dental appointments have been impacted, as of June 13.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Janelle Beswick, told the outlet that initial testing has been inconclusive, and they are now working to collect a larger sample of the residue to test.

“The Aurora VA has been working with the Cheyenne VA and a private vendor in Colorado Springs to sterilize the hospital’s reusable equipment,” the article comments. “The Aurora VA has also placed mobile sterilizing equipment in the operating room area, allowing the hospital to resume some surgeries, Beswick said.”

According to the article, VA officials describe the residue as “black flecks found on the hospital’s reusable surgical instruments.”