Epidemiological Study of Bacterial Contamination in Operation Rooms at Al-Nasiriyah City, Iraq

Abstract

        Bacterial contamination in operating rooms is a critical element in the transmission of illnesses within hospitals, especially hospital-acquired infections. It is regarded as one of the most severe and life-threatening sources of nosocomial infections. This study examined the diagnostic outcomes of 1,832 bacterial culture swabs obtained from the Bacterial Contamination Unit at Al-Nasiriya Teaching Hospital. The collection comprised specimens collected from ten operating theaters from October 2023 till January 2024, facilitating a thorough evaluation of microbial prevalence across diverse surgical departments. The findings indicated that the predominant contamination occurred in general surgery and orthopedic surgery rooms, with Escherichia coli (E. coli) at 40.9%, followed by Enterobacter spp. at 29.5% and Staphylococcus aureus at 23.9%. The least prevalent pathogen was Klebsiella spp (1.2%). The current study underscores the significance of infection control systems in preventing the cross-transmission of nosocomial infections, which can lead to contamination and infection in critically sick patients.