title: Water faucets as a source of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection and colonization in neonatal and adult intensive care unit patients.
abstract: We investigated the occurrence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in our neonatal and adult intensive care units. Using enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus polymerase chain reaction, we showed spatial and temporal associations with clonal identity between patients' and adjacent faucets' clones. Both units' taps were highly colonized with P aeruginosa and with other waterborne bacteria. In the neonatal intensive care unit, strict use of sterile water for bathing neonates may have contributed to a reduction in clinical isolation of P aeruginosa postintervention.
authors: Infectious Diseases Unit, Sanz Medical Center, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel. Electronic address: regevco@gmail.com.
authors: Regev
authors: R
authors: Cohen
authors: Infectious Diseases Unit, Sanz Medical Center, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Frida
authors: F
authors: Babushkin
authors: Infectious Diseases Unit, Sanz Medical Center, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Zvi
authors: Z
authors: Shimoni
authors: Infectious Diseases Unit, Sanz Medical Center, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Shoshana
authors: S
authors: Cohen
authors: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Sanz Medical Center, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Eti
authors: E
authors: Litig
authors: Medical-Surgical Intensive Care Unit, Sanz Medical Center, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Maurice
authors: M
authors: Shapiro
authors: National Center of Infection Control, Ministry of Health, Tel Aviv, Israel; Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors: Amos
authors: A
authors: Adler
authors: Microbiology Laboratory, Sanz Medical Center, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel.
authors: Svetlana
authors: S
authors: Paikin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002353:Carrier State / Q000453:epidemiology*; D050456:Fomites / Q000382:microbiology*; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D058889:Molecular Typing; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014881:Water Supply
keywords: ERIC-PCR; Infection control; Tap water