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

Environmental culturing for Legionella: Can we build a better mouse trap?

“…Specific localized problems that can affect Legionella colonization of fixtures include moderate temperature, presence of mixing valves in electronic/sensor type fixtures, and lack of use. [11][12][13] Our experience indicates that increasing the recirculating hot water temperature to 1408F will restrict Legionella growth in the recirculating line; however, Legionella will be unaffected at the distal outlets, and these outlets will remain extensively colonized. Therefore, relying solely on the testing of the recirculating hot water line for assessing the status of Legionella colonization within a complex water distribution system may be misleading.…”

Post-Outbreak Investigation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Faucet Contamination by Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction and Environmental Factors Affecting Positivity

“…1 Several of these outbreaks have been directly or indirectly linked to water distribution systems. [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] In ICUs, 30%-50% of P. aeruginosa infections have been associated with water. 15 A multicentric prospective study recently established tap contamination in patient rooms as an important environmental risk factor for P. aeruginosa acquisition.…”

“…16 Several factors promote water contamination, including the type of faucet, 9,17,18 the presence and type of aerator on the faucet, 19 the volume of mixed hot and cold water, 17 the alignment of the sink drain, 20 construction or renovation settings, and ICU vs non-ICU settings. 3,20 Once contaminated, eradication of P. aeruginosa in the water system is challenging and often results in replacing related devices 5,[7][8][9][10][11][12]14 or installing point-of-use 0.2-μm filters. 4,13,14 Although cultivation is the reference method, it may not reveal background contamination that may flare up when the environment becomes favorable for growth and culturability.…”

Anforderungen an die Hygiene bei der medizinischen Versorgung von immunsupprimierten Patienten

“…Auch elektronisch gesteuerte berührungs-lose Wasserarmaturen sind als mögliche Quelle für P. aeruginosa und Legionellen beschrieben worden [263] [274].…”