Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Infected or
Colonized Patient
Microbial
Contamination of
Textiles
Endogenous Cross
- Contamination
Microbial
Proliferation on
Textiles
Contamination
of Hospital
Personnel
Hands or
Gloves
Bedmaking -
Release of
Pathogens to Air
Contamination of
Equipment, Door
knobs, etc.
Indirect Cross-
Contamination
Susceptible
Patient
Indirect Cross-
Contamination
Aerosol Cross-
Contamination
Fig. 5.1 Potential transmission routes of pathogens from a colonized or infected patient to
a susceptible patient via hospital textiles
microorganisms that multiply or remain on the textiles can be a source of
healthcare-acquired pathogens [
7
,
42
] (Fig.
5.1
). These pathogens can be transmit-
ted from one part of the host's body to another [
43
]. They can also be the source of
direct or indirect infection of patients and hospital personnel, as discussed below.
Contamination and healthcare-acquired infections (HAI) of patients and hospital
personnel via contaminated towels, gowns, sheets, cleaning wipes and other
hospital textiles with Methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
(MRSA) [
11
,
24
,
28
,
44
-
47
], Vancomycin-resistant
enterococcus
(VRE) [
19
,
24
,
48
],
Carbapenem-resistant
Acinetobacter
[
20
], multidrug-resistant
Acinetobacter
baumannii
[
25
,
28
,
49
], multidrug-resistant
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
[
24
,
50
],
Bacillus cereus
[
51
-
55
],
Cryptosporidium
[
56
],
Microsporum canis
[
57
],
Norwalk
gastroenteritis
[
58
],
Klebsiella pneumonia
[
28
],
Rhizopus
[
59
],
Salmonella gastro-
enteritis
[
60
],
Salmonella typhimurium
[
61
],
Sarcoptes scabiei
[
62
], or
Strepto-
coccus pyogenes
[
37
,
63
] have previously been reported (Table
5.1
). Viruses can
also survive on textiles for days and thus be a source of contamination ([
33
,
64
-
67
]
When handling contaminated textiles hospital, personnel can contaminate their
gloves with micro-organisms and then contaminate other surfaces, such as door
knobs, and even patients directly [
3
,
11
,
20
-
22
,
24
,
25
,
49
,
68
,
69
]. Furthermore,
studies have shown that when the personnel change the bed linens or patients
garments, large quantities of micro-organisms are released into the air, which
then contaminate the immediate and non-immediate surroundings in the same
room as well as throughout the building via the air conditioning system [
3
,
46
,
70
-
72
]. Healthcare workers who touch the aerosol contaminated surfaces can then
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