Assessment of Bioaerosol Contamination (bacteria and fungi) in Operating Rooms of The Largest Educational Hospital in Shiraz, Iran

There is a concern about exposure to bio-aerosols due to their harmful health effects. Bio-aerosols in surgery environment can potentially cause infection in susceptible and unsusceptible patients. The present study aimed to evaluate bacterial and fungal densities and species in surgery rooms in an educational hospital in Shiraz. A total of 168 samples were collected. Active sampling was done by using a single-stage Anderson sampler on plates including blood agar and sabouraud dextrose agar for 10 minutes for bacteria and fungi, respectively. The mean densities of fungi and bacteria were respectively 233.23±2.024 and 232.6±1.383 CFU/m3 before sterilization compared to 233.01±2.041 and 233.57±1.324 CFU/m3 after sterilization of the surgery rooms. No significant difference was observed between the densities of bacteria and fungi before and after sterilization in all surgery rooms (P>0.05). However, it was a significant difference between the total densities of bio-aerosols after sterilization compared to the suggested value. The density of bio-aerosols was greater than 30 CFU/m3 (P<0.01) in 100% of the cases, but did not exceed 500 CFU/m3 in any of the cases (P<0.01 in 71.42% of the cases). Moreover, Penicillium, Fusarium, Cladosporium, and Aspergillus were the most common fungi and gram-positive bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus, and Staphylococcus epidermidis, were the most dominant types of bacteria in surgery rooms. Quantitative and qualitative findings of this study revealed high densities of bacteria and fungi in surgery rooms. Thus, effective strategies have to be proposed to control bio-aerosols and their related health effects.