title: Non-biting flying insects as carriers of pathogenic bacteria in a Brazilian hospital.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Insects have been described as mechanical vectors of nosocomial infections.
  
  
  METHODS
  Non-biting flying insects were collected inside a pediatric ward and neonatal-intensive care unit (ICU) of a Brazilian tertiary hospital.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most (86.4%) of them were found to carry one or more species of bacteria on their external surfaces. The bacteria isolated were Gram-positive bacilli (68.2%) or cocci (40.9%), and Gram-negative bacilli (18.2%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Insects collected inside a hospital were carrying pathogenic bacteria; therefore, one must consider the possibility they may act as mechanical vectors of infections, in especially for debilitated or immune-compromised patients in the hospital environments where the insects were collected.
authors.affiliation: Doenças Infecciosas e Parasitárias, Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro, Uberaba, MG, Brasil. henriquekappel@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Henrique Borges
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Kappel
authors.forename: Adriana Gonçalves
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.forename: Paulo Roberto da
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Afonso
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pelli
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001938:Brazil; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D006090:Gram-Negative Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006094:Gram-Positive Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D007313:Insecta / Q000145:classification / Q000382:microbiology*; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal