Hospital Floors May Be Underappreciated Source of Healthcare-Associated Infections

Hospital floors may be a source of pathogens that can lead to healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), according to AHRQ-funded research published in the American Journal of Infection Control. Researchers at five Cleveland-area hospitals focused their testing on floors in Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infection isolation rooms. They sampled about 300 floor sites in 160 patient rooms and found C. difficile, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and vancomycin-resistant enterococci, all of which can cause HAIs in patients. Researchers found that frequently handled objects such as blood pressure cuffs and call buttons were often in contact with the floor, and that contact with objects on floors frequently resulted in transfer of pathogens to hands. Researchers concluded that patient floors may be an underappreciated source of pathogens and called for more research to determine the extent to which floors can be the source of HAIs. Access the abstract.

2017 Mar 1;45(3):336-338. doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2016.11.005.

Are hospital floors an underappreciated reservoir for transmission of health care-associated pathogens?

Deshpande A1, Cadnum JL2, Fertelli D2, Sitzlar B2, Thota P2, Mana TS2, Jencson A3, Alhmidi H3, Koganti S3, Donskey CJ4.

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Abstract

In a survey of 5 hospitals, we found that floors in patient rooms were frequently contaminated with pathogens and high-touch objects such as blood pressure cuffs and call buttons were often in contact with the floor. Contact with objects on floors frequently resulted in transfer of pathogens to hands.

Published by Elsevier Inc.