Examinations on the cultivated bacteria from the drinking water system of a healthcare building

Abstract

The aim of our research was the identification of nosocomial pathogens found in the internal drinking water network of healthcare facilities which can cause infections in hospitals. In this study, the composition of bacterial communities from the internal water network of a health institution in Győr (Hungary) was examined using standard culturebased methods. Identification of the bacterial isolates was performed using Analytical Profile Index (API). Members of 13 bacterial taxa were recovered from a multi-storey healthcare institution. 10 species were identified via API20E and API20NE testing, out of which isolates of genera Aeromonas, Pseudomonas and Sphingomonas were found in the highest proportion on different media. These bacteria can cause nosocomial infections in clinical environments, leading to serious illnesses mainly in patients, as they may have multiresistance genes. In addition, Legionella species were also identified in the water samples, which are also known to be nosocomial pathogens, since they can be spread with aerosols in hospital environments and can cause severe respiratory diseases in immunocompromised individuals.