Introduction: Healthcare–associated infections (HAIs) are a global concern, whose major causes include the persistent microbial contamination of the hospital environment, and the growing antimicrobial-resistance (AMR) of HAI-associated microbes. The control of contamination has been so far addressed by the use of chemical-based sanitation procedures, which however do not prevent recontamination and can select resistant microbes. Based on the studies on the human microbiome, we characterized the hospital environment and hypothesized to modulate the persistent pathogenic microbiome by a competitive exclusion biological approach, inspired by the microbiome balance principles. Material & Methods: The conventional chemical-based cleaning procedures of were substituted by a probiotic-based system, and environmental contamination was examined by microbiological and molecular methods, including characterization of the resistome of the contaminating population. In parallel, rate of HAI onset and therapy costs were evaluated. Results: The microbial-based sanitation system was shown to induce remodulation of hospital microbiota, obtaining a stable control of both bioburden and AMR, associated with a significant reduction of HAIs and of associated therapy costs. Conclusion: Collected data highlight the possibility to modulate hospital microbiota and suggest that this system might be considered as one of the tools for AMR and infection prevention and control.
Modulating the microbiota of the hospital environment by probiotic cleaning: impact on infections and antimicrobial resistance
Caselli Elisabetta
2019
Abstract
Introduction: Healthcare–associated infections (HAIs) are a global concern, whose major causes include the persistent microbial contamination of the hospital environment, and the growing antimicrobial-resistance (AMR) of HAI-associated microbes. The control of contamination has been so far addressed by the use of chemical-based sanitation procedures, which however do not prevent recontamination and can select resistant microbes. Based on the studies on the human microbiome, we characterized the hospital environment and hypothesized to modulate the persistent pathogenic microbiome by a competitive exclusion biological approach, inspired by the microbiome balance principles. Material & Methods: The conventional chemical-based cleaning procedures of were substituted by a probiotic-based system, and environmental contamination was examined by microbiological and molecular methods, including characterization of the resistome of the contaminating population. In parallel, rate of HAI onset and therapy costs were evaluated. Results: The microbial-based sanitation system was shown to induce remodulation of hospital microbiota, obtaining a stable control of both bioburden and AMR, associated with a significant reduction of HAIs and of associated therapy costs. Conclusion: Collected data highlight the possibility to modulate hospital microbiota and suggest that this system might be considered as one of the tools for AMR and infection prevention and control.I documenti in SFERA sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
