Multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDR-AB) was found in almost half of patient's rooms who were infected or colonized with the germ.

To control hospital-acquired infections, it is important to know the prevalence of contamination by A. baumannii in the environment surrounding the patient in addition to which surfaces are most frequently contaminated.

A team of scientists at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (Baltimore, MD, USA) took samples from 10 surfaces in 50 rooms occupied by patients with a recent history of less than two months before samples were taken or remote history of over two months of MDR-AB. Surfaces sampled included the bedside table, door knob, vital sign monitor touch pad, bed rails, sink, supply cart drawer handles, nurse call button, ventilator surface touch pad, infusion pump, and the floor on both sides of the patient's bed.

The team found that 9.8% of the obtained samples representing 48% of the rooms tested indicated environmental growth of MDR-AB. They discovered that the most commonly contaminated surfaces (fomites) were floors (16%), bedrails (10.2%), drawer handles (20%), infusion pumps (14%) and ventilator touch pads (11.4%). They also ascertained that 85% of environmental surfaces matched the strain of the individual infected in that room. In addition, they also determined that individuals with a recent history of MDR-AB colonization of infection were not considerably more likely to contaminate their environment compared to those with a remote history of MDR-AB.

The authors concluded that for patients with MDR-AB, the surrounding environment is frequently contaminated, even among patients with a remote history of MDR-AB. In addition, surfaces often touched by healthcare workers during routine patient care and commonly contaminated and may be a source of nosocomial transmission.” The study was published in the November 2011 edition of the American Journal of Infection Control.

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