Role of hospital surfaces in transmission of infectious diseases

Aim: To detect infectious agents on various hospital surfaces and to evaluate the reduction of micro-flora on fomites in hospital environment after disinfection. Method: A total of 108pre and post-disinfection surface swabs collected from July 2013 to December 2013 processed by routine microbiological techniques. A disinfectant solution of 70% methanol used for the decontamination of surfaces. The organisms were identified by Gram's stain, biochemical tests and API 20E. Results: Out of 54 pre-decontamination surfaces, 67 bacteria strains were isolated which included 38 were Gram-negative and 29 Gram-positive bacteria. Among Gram-negative bacteria, Klebsiella (22.4%) and Acinetobacter (149%) species were predominant, while Coagulase-negative Staphylococci (22.4%) and Staphylococcus aureus (13.4%) were the most prevalent Gram-positive bacteria. Nursing counters (22.3%) and door handles (17.9%) found to be the heavily contaminated in our study. We revealed 96.2% bacterial growth on pre-disinfection and 5.5% on post- disinfection surfaces. The percentage reduction of bacteria after using 70% methanol as a disinfectant was 90.7%. Conclusion: Hospital surfaces are heavily contaminated with the majority of Gram-negative bacteria which are the potential source of nosocomial infections. The use of disinfectants can significantly reduce the burden of nosocomial infections transmitting through the surfaces.