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Microbial contamination of hospital surfaces remains despite adherence to routine disinfection. Our study demonstrates bioburden from various types of hospital high-touch surfaces and the pathogenicity of all bacteria recovered. Several high-touch hospital surfaces from a single medical-surgical unit were sampled and cultured using replicate organism detection and counting (RODAC) Tryptic Soy agar plates. Colonies were then subcultured to blood agar plates and speciated using MALDI-TOF. The local microbiology laboratory database was queried for any clinical isolate match with the environmental samples recovered. Manikins, bed rails, and workstations-on-wheels were the most contaminated surfaces with the largest variety of bacteria isolated from manikins and bed rails. A total of 60 different types of pathogens were isolated, 18 of which were well-known pathogens, and 7 were classified as important in the health care setting by CDC. Our clinical microbiology laboratory identified 29 of 60 hospital surface bacteria in clinical isolates. Urine, soft tissue, and blood were the most common sources of clinical isolates. Surfaces in the health care environment harbor both well-known and not-so-well-known human pathogens. Several not-so-well-known pathogens are skin flora or environmental bacteria, which in the right setting, can become pathogenic and cause diseases including meningitis, brain abscess, endocarditis, and bacteremia. • Health care surfaces harbor bioburden despite adherence to disinfection policies. • Both human pathogenic and nonpathogenic microorganisms were recovered. • Several not-so-well-known pathogens in the right setting, can become pathogenic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) affect millions of patients every year. Pathogen transmission via fomites and healthcare workers (HCWs) contribute to the persistence of HAIs in hospitals. A critical parameter needed to assess risk of environmental transmission is the pathogen transfer efficiency between fomites and fingers. Recent studies have shown that pathogen transfer is not symmetric. In this study,we evaluated how the commonly used assumption of symmetry in transfer efficiency changes the dynamics of pathogen movement between patients and rooms and the exposures to uncolonized patients. Methods We developed and analyzed a deterministic compartmental model of Acinetobacter baumannii describing the contact-mediated process among HCWs, patients, and the environment. We compared a system using measured asymmetrical transfer efficiency to 2 symmetrical transfer efficiency systems. Results Symmetric models consistently overestimated contamination levels on fomites and underestimated contamination on patients and HCWs compared to the asymmetrical model. The magnitudes of these miscalculations can exceed 100%. Regardless of the model, relative percent reductions in contamination declined after hand hygiene compliance reached approximately 60% in the large fomite scenario and 70% in the small fomite scenario. Conclusions This study demonstrates how healthcare facility-specific data can be used for decision-making processes. We show that the incorrect use of transfer efficiency data leads to biased effectiveness estimates for intervention strategies. More accurate exposure models are needed for more informed infection prevention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Health care-associated infections (HAIs) are a significant problem in hospitals, and environmental surfaces have been implicated as a source of HAIs in the hospital environment. Furthermore, Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria can persist on dry environmental surfaces for as long as several months. Poorly cleaned surfaces may serve as vehicles for microbes, which may then be transferred to patients. Methods: Cotton and microfiber towels were both tested for their abilities to bind quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs). The towels were exposed to 3 commercially available disinfectants for 0.5, 30, and 180 minutes. Germicidal spray tests (GSTs) were performed for all towel eluates in accordance with the AOAC International method 961.02. Cotton towel eluates were analyzed for QAC concentration using high-performance liquid chromatography. Results: QAC concentrations were reduced by up to 85.3% after exposure to cotton towels, resulting in failure of the disinfectants exposed to cotton towels in 96% of the GSTs. Conclusion: The use of cotton towels with QAC-based cleansers should be reconsidered, particularly in hospitals where effective cleaning of the patient environment is needed to reduce the risk of HAIs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Rotavirus A and human adenovirus dissemination were demonstrated both in a pediatric ward and in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the same pediatric hospital. Virus detection from fomites samples were higher in the pediatric ward (42.3% [137 out of 324]) than in the NICU (4.5% [7 out of 156]), revealing that cleaning processes used in our NICU are effective in reducing viral contamination, suggesting human adenovirus as a potential biomarker of contamination of hospital fomites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contamination of hospital surfaces by bacteria is increasingly recognized. We assessed commonly touched surfaces using contact plates and Petrifilms (3M, St. Paul, MN) and compared the results against proposed microbiology standards. Toilet door handles were the most heavily contaminated (7.97 ± 0.68 colony forming units [CFU]/cm 2 ) and exceeded proposed standards on 74% of occasions. Petrifilms detected statistically higher CFU from bedside lockers. Further research is required on the use of standards and methods of sampling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]