A cross-sectional study on bacterial contamination on the touchscreens and posterior surfaces of smartphones of emergency department staff.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Cleaning smartphones of healthcare workers (HCWs) is generally recommended; however, most previous studies on bacterial contamination of smartphones assessed touchscreens alone. This study compared the prevalence of bacterial contamination on touchscreens and posterior surfaces of smartphones owned by HCWs.

METHOD

A cross-sectional study of smartphones used by HCWs working at an emergency department (ED) at a Japanese tertiary care hospital was conducted. Bacteria on each surface of the smartphones were isolated separately. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the prevalence of microbial contamination on each surface of the smartphones and the types of associated bacterial species. Fisher's exact test was used to compare dichotomous outcomes.

RESULTS

The smartphones of 40 HCWs working in the ED of a Japanese tertiary care hospital were examined. The touchscreens and posterior surfaces were contaminated in 26 (65.0%) and 36 (90.0%) smartphones, respectively, indicating the posterior surface was more frequently contaminated (p = 0.014). Bacillus species and coagulase-negative staphylococci were most frequently isolated from each surface of the smartphones.

CONCLUSIONS

The posterior surface of a smartphone was more significantly contaminated with bacteria than the touchscreen. Both surfaces of smartphones need to be cleaned to prevent bacterial contamination in healthcare environments.