"Cloud" health-care workers.
Certain bacteria dispersed by health-care workers can cause hospital infections. Asymptomatic health-care workers colonized rectally, vaginally, or on the skin with group A streptococci have caused outbreaks of surgical site infection by airborne dispersal. Outbreaks have been associated with skin colonization or viral upper respiratory tract infection in a phenomenon of airborne dispersal of Staphylococcus aureus called the "cloud" phenomenon. This review summarizes the data supporting the existence of cloud health-care workers.
Sherertz
R J
RJ
Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27157-1042, USA. sherertz@wfubmc.edu
Bassetti
S
S
Bassetti-Wyss
B
B
D001886:Bordetella pertussis; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D017757:Infectious Disease Transmission, Professional-to-Patient; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission*; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission*; D013297:Streptococcus pyogenes; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014917:Whooping Cough / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission*