Environmental contamination makes an important contribution to hospital infection

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0195-6701(07)60015-2Get rights and content

Summary

Meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) are capable of surviving for days to weeks on environmental surfaces in healthcare facilities. Environmental surfaces frequently touched by healthcare workers are commonly contaminated in the rooms of patients colonized or infected with MRSA or VRE. A number of studies have documented that healthcare workers may contaminate their hands or gloves by touching contaminated environmental surfaces, and that hands or gloves become contaminated with numbers of organisms that are likely to result in transmission to patients. Pathogens may also be transferred directly from contaminated surfaces to susceptible patients. There is an increasing body of evidence that cleaning or disinfection of the environment can reduce transmission of healthcare-associated pathogens. Because routine cleaning of equipment items and other high-touch surfaces does not always remove pathogens from contaminated surfaces, improved methods of disinfecting the hospital environment are needed. Preliminary studies suggest that hydrogen peroxide vapour technology deserves further evaluation as a method for decontamination of the environment in healthcare settings.

References (32)

  • JM Boyce et al.

    Environmental contamination due to methicillinresistant Staphylococcus aureus: possible infection control implications

    Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol

    (1997)
  • Otter JA, Havill NL, Adams NMT, Boyce JM. Extensive environmental contamination associated wtih patients with loose...
  • CP Johnston et al.

    Epidemiology of communityacquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus skin infections among healthcare workers in an outpatient clinic

    Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol

    (2006)
  • A Bhalla et al.

    Acquisition of nosocomial pathogens on hands after contact with environmental surfaces near hospitalized patients

    Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol

    (2004)
  • KJ Hardy et al.

    A study of the relationship between environmental contamination with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and patients' acquisition of MRSA

    Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol

    (2006)
  • GA Noskin et al.

    Recovery of vancomycin-resistant enterococci on fingertips and environmental surfaces

    Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol

    (1995)
  • Cited by (550)

    View all citing articles on Scopus
    View full text