Rate of contamination of hospital privacy curtains in a burns/plastic ward: A longitudinal study

doi:10.1016/j.ajic.2018.03.004

American Journal of Infection Control

Volume 46, Issue 9, September 2018, Pages 1019-1021

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2018.03.004 Get rights and content

Background

Since hospital patient privacy curtains can harbor bacteria, are high-touch surfaces, and are cleaned infrequently, they may be involved in pathogen transmission. The aim of this longitudinal prospective study was to understand curtain contamination to inform curtain hygiene protocols, thereby minimizing the role of curtains in pathogen transmission.

Methods

Over 21 days, cultures of 10 freshly laundered curtains (8 test curtains surrounding patient beds and 2 controls in an unoccupied staff room) were taken in the Regional Burns/Plastics Unit. Contact plates were used to sample the curtains near the edge hem where they are most frequently touched. Microbial contamination and the presence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were determined.

Results

By day 3, test curtains showed increased microbial contamination (mean colony-forming units [CFU]/cm² = 1.17) compared to control curtains (mean CFU/cm² = 0.19). Test curtains became increasingly contaminated over time, with mean CFU/cm² for days 17 and 21 of 1.86 and 5.11, respectively. By day 10, 1/8 test curtains tested positive for MRSA, and 5/8 were positive by day 14.

Conclusions

Patient privacy curtains became progressively contaminated with bacteria, including MRSA. Between days 10 and 14 after being hung, curtains showed increased MRSA positivity. This may represent an opportune time to intervene, either by cleaning or replacing the curtains.

Section snippets

Background

Healthcare-associated infections contribute to unnecessary patient suffering and to increased healthcare costs.1, 2 While person-to-person contact is the primary pathway, studies show that environmental surfaces can serve as important routes of transmission as well.³

Hospital privacy curtains surrounding patient beds are at a high risk for cross-contamination for several reasons: 1) they are frequently touched;⁴ 2) they are infrequently cleaned or changed; and 3) people may be less likely to

Methods

In this longitudinal prospective pilot study in the Regional Burn/Plastic Unit, Health Sciences Center, in Winnipeg, Canada, surveillance cultures of curtains were taken over a 21-day period.

Ten standard, identical polyester/cotton curtains were freshly laundered by a commercial company and packed in plastic nonsterile bags. Four curtains were placed in a 4-bed room, 4 were placed in 2 double rooms, and 2 controls were placed in areas without direct patient or caregiver contact. No rooms were

Results

Table 1 shows the degree of contamination (CFU/cm²) for each curtain on each day. Contamination on day 1 was minimal, with mean CFU/cm² of 0.20 (control) and 0.10 (test). Control curtains stayed clean over the 21 days (mean CFU/cm² = 0.60). Increasing test curtain contamination occurred over time, with an inflexion point occurring between day 17 and 21 (1.86 to 5.11 CFU/cm²).

The number of curtains that tested positive for MRSA increased progressively over time (Table 2). By day 21, 3 of the 4

Discussion

To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess the trajectory of microbial contamination on curtains over time, with control curtains used for comparison. Patient curtains became increasingly contaminated despite starting at the same level as controls. Therefore, regular curtain contact that occurs in proximity to an occupied patient bed results in increasing colonization over time. Given that we sampled areas where people hold curtains, it is likely that the increasing contamination was

Conclusions

Freshly laundered patient hospital privacy curtains have minimal contamination when first hung. After hanging for 14 days, most curtains tested positive for MRSA. By day 21, almost all curtains exceeded 2.5 CFU/cm². The presence of MRSA and the number of CFUs suggest that curtains are a source of cross-contamination in hospitals. These data suggest that interventions to clean or routinely replace curtains should occur approximately 14 days after the curtains are hung. Additional studies

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: Funding source: Support from for this work comes from the Firefighters Burn Fund (Manitoba), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery grant (Grant no.: RGPIN/04922-2014) and Collaborative Health Research Projects (CHRP) Operating grant (Grant no.: CHRP 413713-2012).

: Conflicts of interest: The authors report no conflict of interest relevant to this manuscript.

¹: Both authors contributed equally to this manuscript.

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Major ArticleRate of contamination of hospital privacy curtains in a burns/plastic ward: A longitudinal study

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Section snippets

Background

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusions

Am J Infect Control

J Hosp Infect

Braz J Microbiol

Contamination of environmental surfaces by Staphylococcus aureus in a dermatological ward and its preventive measures

Biol Pharm Bull

Major Article
Rate of contamination of hospital privacy curtains in a burns/plastic ward: A longitudinal study