Microbiological Profile of Air and Surface Contamination in Operation Theatres and Intensive Care Units of a Teaching Hospital in Rural North India

Background: Harbouring of potential pathogens in operationtheatres (OTs) and intensive care units (ICUs) of hospital is amajor cause of patient’s morbidity and mortality. Environmentalmonitoring by the microbiological testing of surfaces andequipments is useful to detect changing trends of types andcounts of microbial flora. High level of microbial contaminationindicates the needs for periodic surveillance aimed at earlydetection of bacterial contamination levels and prevention ofhospital acquired infections.Aim: The aims of the study were to count CFU (colony formingunit) rate of indoor air, to identify bacterial colonization ofsurface and equipments isolated from Operation theatres, ICUsand Labour room of a teaching hospital in district Kangra,Himachal Pradesh.Methods: This retrospective study, analyzing themicrobiological surveillance data from OTs over a period of 2years from January2017 to December2018 was conducted at atertiary care hospital. Air sampling of 8 OT’s, 4 ICU’s and 1 LRwere done by settle plate method. Swabs were taken fromdifferent sites, equipments and bacterial species were isolatedand identified from them as per standard guidelines.Result: A total of 105 air samples were collected for 2 yearfrom 8 OT’s, 4 ICU’s and 1 LR. The bacterial CFU/m3 /mincounts of air from all OTs ranged from Superspeciality OTSshowed less bacterial CFU rate of air (0-5 CFU/m3) followed byOpthalmology OT (5-8 CFU/m3) and highest in Gynae (30-46CFU/m3). CCU showed less bacterial CFU rate (10-15CFU/m3) followed by Surgery ICU (28-35 CFU/m3) and highestin PICU (38-42 CFU/m3), Labour room showed 42-51 CFU/m3.Bacterial species were isolated from 43.85 % out of total 157swab samples taken from all OTs and ICUs. The mostcommon isolate was Bacillus species 46% followed by CONS(22%). Pathogenic organisms isolated were 10% Gramnegative bacilli which included 3% Non-Fermenters, thecommon isolate was Klebsiella spp. amongst gram negatives.

High resistance to Azithromycin- A cause of concern.

Macrolide antibiotics are well established class of antimicrobial agents. Azithromycin due to better tolerance and once a daily dose is commonly prescribed by clinician today. The aim of our study was to analyze the resistance to erythromycin in all gram positive bacteria isolated in department of microbiology Dr. RPGMC Tanda. A result of antibiotic susceptibility testing done by Kir By bauer disc diffusion method were analysed, Of the totral gram positive isolates 54 % were resistant to Azithromycin with maximum resistance seen with Enterococcus species (75 %) . It is recommended that an antibiotic policy should be made and microbiological surveillance cotinued so as to decrease the selective pressure on microorganisms.

Surveillance of water quality in a medical college campus in a rural area in North West India.

Water bacteriology is an important component of providing safe and potable water supply. Surveillance of drinking water helps in identifying possible sources of water contamination. The present study was done in DRPGMC Tanda campus to monitor the quality of water samples. A total of 79 water samples were collected and tested over a period of two and a half years. About 33 % of these were found to be not fit for drinking. The findings of the study underscore the importance of following the steps of water purification.