Legionella and agar cultures in healthcare facilities waters: a monitoring study in North-East Italy

Abstract Background Water healthiness is fundamental in medical facilities. Monitoring Legionella spp. and agar cultures concentration is therefore very important. This study looks into these parameters to examine possible criticalities that could need interventions. Methods We collected 399 Legione...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of public health 2020-09, Vol.30 (Supplement_5)
Main Authors: Chirico, L, Righini, M, Bravo, G, Mellace, F, Cocconi, R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agar
Cultural values
Disinfection
Districts
Environmental monitoring
Health care
Health care facilities
Health facilities
Health services
Legionella
Medicine
Parametric analysis
Public health
Software
Telemedicine
Values
Water quality
Water quality management
Water supply
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Summary:Abstract Background Water healthiness is fundamental in medical facilities. Monitoring Legionella spp. and agar cultures concentration is therefore very important. This study looks into these parameters to examine possible criticalities that could need interventions. Methods We collected 399 Legionella and 82 agar cultures withdrawals between November 2019 and February 2020 from 157 detection points (like taps and showers) in 31 structures of four health districts. Withdrawals referred to the 4 quarters of year 2019 (t1, t2, t3, t4). Legionella values were expressed in colony forming units (CFU)/l; agar cultures in CFU/ml. We performed a non-parametric analysis to compare mean values between districts. We used the statistical software package SAS version 9.4 for Windows, setting the significance level at α = 0.05. Results 45% of structures presented at least one positive withdrawal for Legionella (in six we found positivity in more than 1 quarter). Concerning Legionella concentration, we found significant difference between districts in t2 (p = 0.012) and between wards of one district in t3 (p 
ISSN:1101-1262
1464-360X
DOI:10.1093/eurpub/ckaa166.691