Assessment of Bioaerosol Contamination (bacteria and fungi) in Operating Rooms of The Largest Educational Hospital in Shiraz, Iran

Fatemeh Dehghani, Samaneh Shahsavani, Narges Shamsedini, Mansooreh Dehghani, Maryam Gholamzadeh

Abstract


There is a concern about exposure to bio-aerosols due to their harmful health effects. Bio-aerosols in surgery environment can potentially cause infection in susceptible and unsusceptible patients. The present study aimed to evaluate bacterial and fungal densities and species in surgery rooms in an educational hospital in Shiraz.
A total of 168 sam¬ples were collected. Active sampling was done by using a single-stage Anderson sampler on plates including blood agar and sabouraud dextrose agar for 10 minutes for bacteria and fungi, respectively.
The mean densities of fungi and bacteria were respectively 233.23±2.024 and 232.6±1.383 CFU/m3 before sterilization compared to 233.01±2.041 and 233.57±1.324 CFU/m3 after sterilization of the surgery rooms. No significant difference was observed between the densities of bacteria and fungi before and after sterilization in all surgery rooms (P>0.05). However, it was a significant difference between the total densities of bio-aerosols after sterilization compared to the suggested value. The density of bio-aerosols was greater than 30 CFU/m3 (P<0.01) in 100% of the cases, but did not exceed 500 CFU/m3 in any of the cases (P<0.01 in 71.42% of the cases). Moreover, Penicillium, Fusarium, Cladosporium, and Aspergillus were the most common fungi and gram-positive bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus, and Staphylococcus epidermidis, were the most dominant types of bacteria in surgery rooms.
Quantitative and qualitative findings of this study revealed high densities of bacteria and fungi in surgery rooms. Thus, effective strategies have to be proposed to control bio-aerosols and their related health effects.

Keywords


Air pollution; Bio-aerosols; Bacteria; Fungi; Operating room

Full Text:

XML PDF

References


Mirzaei R, Shahriary E, Quresh M, Rakhshkhorshid A, Khammary A, Mohammadi M. Quantitative and qualitative evaluation of bio-aerosols in surgery rooms and emergency department of an educational hospital. Jundishapur J Microbiol. 2014; 7(10): e11688.

Ojeil M, Jermann C, Holah J, Denyer S, Maillard J. Evaluation of new in vitro efficacy test for antimicrobial surface activity reflecting UK hospital conditions. Journal of Hospital Infection. 2013; 85(4): 274-81.

Li Ch, Hou P. Bioaerosol characteristics in hospital clean rooms. The Science of the Total Environment. 2003; 305(1-3): 169-76.

Jo W, Seo Y. Indoor and outdoor bio-aerosol levels at recreation facilities, elementary schools, and homes. Chemosphere. 2005; 61(11): 1570-79.

Lee J, Jo W. Characteristics of indoor and outdoor bio-aerosols at Korean high-rise apartment buildings. Environmental Research. 2006; 101(1): 11-17.

Burkowska A, Kalwasińska A, Walczak M. Airborne mesophilic bacteria at the Ciechocinek health resort. Pol J Environ Stud. 2012; 21(2): 307-12.

Oppliger A, Hilfiker S, Vuduc T. Influence of seasons and sampling strategy on assessment of bioaerosols in sewage treatment plants in Switzerland. Ann Occup Hyg. 2005; 49(5): 393-00.

Karra S, Katsivela E. Microorganisms in bioaerosol emissions from wastewater treatment plants during summer at a Mediterranean site. Water research. 2007; 41(6): 1355-65.

Sturgeon C, Lamport A I, Lloyd D H, Muir P. Bacterial contamination of suction tips used during surgical procedures performed on dogs and cats. Am J Vet Res. 2000; 61(7): 779-83.

Harper T A M, Bridgewater Sh, Brown L, PowBrown P, Stewart-Johnson A, Adesiyun A. A. Bioaerosol sampling for airborne bacteria in a small animal veterinary teaching hospital. Infection Ecology and Epidemiology. 2013; 3: 1-7.

Kim K. Y, Kim Y Sh, Kim, D. Distribution Characteristics of Airborne Bacteria and Fungi in the General Hospitals of Korea. Industrial Health. 2010; 48(2): 236–43.

Faridi S, Hassanvand M S, Naddafi K, Yunesian M, Nabizadeh R, Sowlat M H, et al. Indoor/outdoor relationships of bioaerosol concentrations in a retirement home and a school dormitory. Environ Sci Pollut Res. 2014; 22(11): 8190–00.

Niazi S, Hassanvand M S, Mahvi A M, Nabizadeh R, Alimohammadi M, Nabavi S, et al. Assessment of bioaerosol contamination (bacteria and fungi) in the largest urban wastewater treatment plant in the Middle East. Environ Sci Pollut Res. 2015; 22(20): 16014-21

Bolookat F, Hassanvand MS, Faridi S, Hadei M, Rahmatinia M, Alimohammadi M. Assessment of bioaerosol particle characteristics at different hospital wards and operating theaters: A case study in Tehran. MethodsX. 2018. 5: 1588–96.

Pastuszka J, Tha Paw U, Lis D, Wlazlo A, Ulfig K. Bacterial and fungal aerosol in indoor environment in Upper Silesia, Poland. Atmospheric Environment. 2000; 34(22): 3833-42.

Jaffal A, Nsanze H, Bener A, Ameen A. S, Banat I, Mogheth A. Hospital airborne microbial pollution in a desert country. Environ Int. 1997; 23(2): 167–72.

Hoseinzadeh E, Samarghandie MR, Ghiasian S A, Alikhani M Y, Roshanaie G. Evaluation of Bioaerosols in five Educational Hospitals Wards Air in Hamedan, during 2011-2012. Jundishapur J Microbiol. 2013; 6(6): e10704.

Ekhaise F, Ighosewe O, Ajakpovi O. Hospital Indoor Airborne Microflora in Private and Government Owned Hospitals in Benin City, Nigeria. World Journal of Medical Sciences. 2008; 3(1): 19-23.

Zahra Tolabi Z, Alimohammadi M, Hassanvand S, Nabizadeh R, Soleimani H, Ahmad Zarei A. The investigation of type and concentration of bio-aerosols in the air of surgical rooms: A case study in Shariati hospital, Karaj. MethodsX. 2019; 6: 641–50




Iranian Journal of Health, Safety and Environment e-ISSN: :2345-5535 Iran university of Medical sciences, Tehran, Iran