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Surface-attached cells, biofilms and biocide susceptibility: implications for hospital cleaning and disinfection

Surface-attached cells, biofilms and biocide susceptibility: implications for hospital cleaning and disinfection
Surface-attached cells, biofilms and biocide susceptibility: implications for hospital cleaning and disinfection
Microbes tend to attach to available surfaces and form biofilms readily, which is problematic in healthcare settings. Biofilms are traditionally associated with wet or damp surfaces such as indwelling medical devices and tubing on medical equipment. However, microbes can survive for extended periods in a desiccated state on dry hospital surfaces, and biofilms have recently been discovered on dry hospital surfaces. Microbes attached to surfaces and in biofilms are less susceptible to biocides, antibiotics and physical stress. Thus, surface attachment and/or biofilm formation may explain how vegetative bacteria can survive on surfaces for weeks to months (or more), interfere with attempts to recover microbes through environmental sampling, and provide a mixed bacterial population for the horizontal transfer of resistance genes. The capacity of existing detergent formulations and disinfectants to disrupt biofilms may have an important and previously unrecognized role in determining their effectiveness in the field, which should be reflected in testing standards. There is a need for further research to elucidate the nature and physiology of microbes on dry hospital surfaces, specifically the prevalence and composition of biofilms. This will inform new approaches to hospital cleaning and disinfection, including novel surfaces that reduce microbial attachment and improve microbial detachment, and methods to augment the activity of biocides against surface-attached microbes such as bacteriophages and antimicrobial peptides. Future strategies to address environmental contamination on hospital surfaces should consider the presence of microbes attached to surfaces, including biofilms
biofilms, biocide susceptibility, planktonic cells, urface attached cells, cleaning, disinfection
0195-6701
16-27
Otter, J.A.
c911ca8c-d0b6-4013-ab65-721c0bce5e84
Vickery, K.
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Walker, J.
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deLancey Pulcini, E.
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Stoodley, P.
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Goldenberg, S.D.
aff0781b-d3c2-4adb-bc57-607362df6f3b
Salkeld, J.
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Chewins, J.
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Yezli, S.
5b48433c-29ec-4801-816a-fb23b182b36b
Edgeworth, J.D.
354fe3b0-cb55-4589-be84-932dc2a94223
Otter, J.A.
c911ca8c-d0b6-4013-ab65-721c0bce5e84
Vickery, K.
6f37157b-6cc4-4e96-a7ef-dd05c6e4f08b
Walker, J.
f1da61e2-8166-4864-a576-8452faa1fc0a
deLancey Pulcini, E.
e1967e7a-4197-4869-966d-408329a0522a
Stoodley, P.
08614665-92a9-4466-806e-20c6daeb483f
Goldenberg, S.D.
aff0781b-d3c2-4adb-bc57-607362df6f3b
Salkeld, J.
d66b1c7e-ce1b-4831-9ded-b709689ca6ac
Chewins, J.
32f2ee49-5dc0-41b2-a174-cad06f7faf14
Yezli, S.
5b48433c-29ec-4801-816a-fb23b182b36b
Edgeworth, J.D.
354fe3b0-cb55-4589-be84-932dc2a94223

Otter, J.A., Vickery, K., Walker, J., deLancey Pulcini, E., Stoodley, P., Goldenberg, S.D., Salkeld, J., Chewins, J., Yezli, S. and Edgeworth, J.D. (2015) Surface-attached cells, biofilms and biocide susceptibility: implications for hospital cleaning and disinfection. Journal of Hospital Infection, 89 (1), 16-27. (doi:10.1016/j.jhin.2014.09.008).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Microbes tend to attach to available surfaces and form biofilms readily, which is problematic in healthcare settings. Biofilms are traditionally associated with wet or damp surfaces such as indwelling medical devices and tubing on medical equipment. However, microbes can survive for extended periods in a desiccated state on dry hospital surfaces, and biofilms have recently been discovered on dry hospital surfaces. Microbes attached to surfaces and in biofilms are less susceptible to biocides, antibiotics and physical stress. Thus, surface attachment and/or biofilm formation may explain how vegetative bacteria can survive on surfaces for weeks to months (or more), interfere with attempts to recover microbes through environmental sampling, and provide a mixed bacterial population for the horizontal transfer of resistance genes. The capacity of existing detergent formulations and disinfectants to disrupt biofilms may have an important and previously unrecognized role in determining their effectiveness in the field, which should be reflected in testing standards. There is a need for further research to elucidate the nature and physiology of microbes on dry hospital surfaces, specifically the prevalence and composition of biofilms. This will inform new approaches to hospital cleaning and disinfection, including novel surfaces that reduce microbial attachment and improve microbial detachment, and methods to augment the activity of biocides against surface-attached microbes such as bacteriophages and antimicrobial peptides. Future strategies to address environmental contamination on hospital surfaces should consider the presence of microbes attached to surfaces, including biofilms

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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 8 September 2014
e-pub ahead of print date: 30 September 2014
Published date: January 2015
Keywords: biofilms, biocide susceptibility, planktonic cells, urface attached cells, cleaning, disinfection
Organisations: nCATS Group

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 370064
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/370064
ISSN: 0195-6701
PURE UUID: d5745fb2-0fa6-4766-98aa-d759a1e067d3
ORCID for P. Stoodley: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-6069-273X

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 20 Oct 2014 12:24
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:34

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Contributors

Author: J.A. Otter
Author: K. Vickery
Author: J. Walker
Author: E. deLancey Pulcini
Author: P. Stoodley ORCID iD
Author: S.D. Goldenberg
Author: J. Salkeld
Author: J. Chewins
Author: S. Yezli
Author: J.D. Edgeworth

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