By Healthcare Facilities Today

New research finds significantly higher levels of infectious pathogens in water from faucet taps with aerators compared to water from deeper in the plumbing system, according to an article on the Medical Xpress website. The study was published in the February issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

"Aerators are a reservoir for drug-resistant bacteria and a source of infection for patients at risk,. Safe water is vital to ensuring patient safety where waterborne infections increase morbidity, mortality, treatment costs, compensation claims and prolong hospital stays," Maria Luisa Cristina, PhD, a lead author of the study, said in the article.

Researchers from the University of Genova in Italy and collaborating universities studied cold and hot water samples at two tertiary care hospitals for a year from faucets used by healthcare professionals for handwashing, surgical washing, and washing of medical equipment.

The total microbial load was up to 10 times greater when aerators were in place than after they had been sterilized, according to the research. The findings show that opportunist micro-organisms like Legionella spp., Acinetobacter spp. and other Gram-negative bacteria were significantly higher at the faucet than in the plumbing system. 

"Hospitals tend to have large, complex waterworks with low-flow areas that produce stagnation and biofilm formation; hot and cold water temperatures that are not well regulated may be ideal for bacterial growth," Tara Palmore, MD, said in a commentary published with the study. 

Read the article.