Hospital Air: A Potential Route for Transmission of Infections Caused by Β-Lactam–Resistant Bacteria Publisher Pubmed



Mirhoseini SH^{1, 2, 3} ; Nikaeen M¹ ; Shamsizadeh Z^{1, 2} ; Khanahmad H⁴
Source: American Journal of Infection Control Published:2016

Abstract

Background The emergence of bacterial resistance to β-lactam antibiotics seriously challenges the treatment of various nosocomial infections. This study was designed to investigate the presence of β-lactam–resistant bacteria (BLRB) in hospital air. Methods A total of 64 air samples were collected in 4 hospital wards. Detection of airborne bacteria was carried out using culture plates with and without β-lactams. BLRB isolates were screened for the presence of 5 common β-lactamase–encoding genes. Sequence analysis of predominant BLRB was also performed. Results The prevalence of BLRB ranged between 3% and 34%. Oxacillin-resistant bacteria had the highest prevalence, followed by ceftazidime- and cefazolin-resistant bacteria. The frequency of β-lactamase–encoding genes in isolated BLRB ranged between 0% and 47%, with the highest and lowest detection for OXA-23 and CTX-m-32, respectively. MecA had a relatively high frequency in surgery wards and operating theaters, whereas the frequency of blaTEM was higher in intensive care units and internal medicine wards. OXA-51 was detected in 4 wards. Acinetobacter spp, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Staphylococcus spp were the most predominant BLRB. Conclusions The results revealed that hospital air is a potential route of transmission of BLRB, such as Acinetobacter and Staphylococcus, 2 important causative agents of nosocomial infections. Therefore, improvement of control measures against the spreading of airborne bacteria in hospital environments is warranted. © 2016 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc.