Is there an association between airborne and surface microbes in the critical care environment?

Smith, J.; Adams, C.E.; King, M.F.; Noakes, C.J.; Robertson, C.; Dancer, S.J.

Abstract

Background
There are few data and no accepted standards for air quality in the intensive care unit (ICU). Any relationship between airborne pathogens and hospital-acquired infection (HAI) risk in the ICU remains unknown.
Aim
First, to correlate environmental contamination of air and surfaces in the ICU; second, to examine any association between environmental contamination and ICU-acquired staphylococcal infection.
Methods
Patients, air, and surfaces were screened on 10 sampling days in a mechanically ventilated 10-bed ICU for a 10-month period. Near-patient hand-touch sites (N = 500) and air (N = 80) were screened for total colony count and Staphylococcus aureus. Air counts were compared with surface counts according to proposed standards for air and surface bioburden. Patients were monitored for ICU-acquired staphylococcal infection throughout.
Findings
Overall, 235 of 500 (47%) surfaces failed the standard for aerobic counts (≤2.5 cfu/cm2). Half of passive air samples (20/40: 50%) failed the ‘index of microbial air’ contamination (2 cfu/9 cm plate/h), and 15/40 (37.5%) active air samples failed the clean air standard (

Citation

Smith, J., Adams, C., King, M., Noakes, C., Robertson, C., & Dancer, S. (2018). Is there an association between airborne and surface microbes in the critical care environment?. Journal of Hospital Infection, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2018.04.003

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 2, 2018
• Online Publication Date: Apr 9, 2018
• Publication Date: Apr 9, 2018
• Deposit Date: Jun 13, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 10, 2019
• Journal: Journal of Hospital Infection
• Print ISSN: 0195-6701
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2018.04.003
• Keywords: Hospital-acquired infection, Hospital environment, Air, Bacterial transmission, Environmental contamination, Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/1203197