Non-touch fittings in hospitals: a possible source of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Legionella spp

Non-touch fittings are gradually becoming very common in the bathrooms and toilets of public facilities and restaurants. Hospitals and other healthcare facilities have recently started to install these types of water taps to lower water consumption, thus saving costs, and to prevent healthcare worke...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of hospital infection 2001-10, Vol.49 (2), p.117-121
Main Authors: Halabi, M., Wiesholzer-Pittl, M., Schöberl, J., Mittermayer, H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Austria
Biological and medical sciences
Cross Infection - microbiology
Cross Infection - prevention & control
Epidemiology. Vaccinations
Equipment and Supplies, Hospital - microbiology
Equipment Design
General aspects
Humans
infection
Infectious diseases
Legionella - isolation & purification
Medical sciences
non-touch fittings
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Pseudomonas aeruginosa - isolation & purification
Water Microbiology
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Summary:Non-touch fittings are gradually becoming very common in the bathrooms and toilets of public facilities and restaurants. Hospitals and other healthcare facilities have recently started to install these types of water taps to lower water consumption, thus saving costs, and to prevent healthcare workers from touching the tap, thus promoting hygiene. This study analysed the bacteriological water quality of 38 non-touch water taps in different settings in a 450-bed secondary-care hospital in Upper Austria. Two different tap types were installed: 23 taps were without temperature selection and 15 were with temperature selection (cold and warm). A membrane filtration method was used, and the authors screened for both indicator organisms andPseudomonas aeruginosa in 100ml water samples. In 10 non-touch taps without temperature selection, the authors also screened for Legionella spp. in 500ml water samples. Seventy four percent of the taps without temperature selection and 7% of the taps with temperature selection showed contamination with P. aeruginosa (P
ISSN:0195-6701
1532-2939
DOI:10.1053/jhin.2001.1060