Penicillum and Aspergillus Grown from Aerosols

A cross-sectional study was performed in 10 emergency basic life support ambulances operating in Bilbao, Spain, to assess surface bacterial contamination. (...) Microbial growth was observed in 73% of ambulances samples: Inner passenger door’s handle, steering wheel and left handle of the stretcher had a higher bacterial load. Coagulase-negative staphylococci were the most frequently isolated microorganism while methicillin susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) was only isolated in two of the ten sampled ambulances. Presence of clinically relevant bacterial contamination suggests that disinfection of the studied basic life support ambulances was not optimal and represents a potential risk of infection for the patients transferred in them. It is critical to implement existing infection control and prevention protocols to resolve this issue.