Evaluation of Air Contamination in Orthopaedic Operating Theatres in Hospitals in Southern Italy: The IMPACT Project

Maria Teresa Montagna, Serafina Rutigliano, Paolo Trerotoli, Christian Napoli, Francesca Apollonio, Alessandro D’Amico, Osvalda De Giglio, Giusy Diella, Marco Lopuzzo, Angelo Marzella, Simona Mascipinto, Chrysovalentinos Pousis, Roberto Albertini, Cesira Pasquarella, Daniela D’Alessandro, Gabriella Serio and Giuseppina Caggiano
Additional contact information
Maria Teresa Montagna: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Serafina Rutigliano: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Paolo Trerotoli: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Christian Napoli: Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences and Translational Medicine, “Sapienza” University of Rome, 0189 Rome, Italy
Francesca Apollonio: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Alessandro D’Amico: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Osvalda De Giglio: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Giusy Diella: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Marco Lopuzzo: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Angelo Marzella: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Simona Mascipinto: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Chrysovalentinos Pousis: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Roberto Albertini: Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, 43125 Parma, Italy
Cesira Pasquarella: Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, 43125 Parma, Italy
Daniela D’Alessandro: Department of Civil, Building and Environmental Engineering, “Sapienza” University of Rome, 00184 Rome, Italy
Gabriella Serio: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy
Giuseppina Caggiano: Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 19, 1-11

Abstract: Postoperative infections are a concern, especially in total knee and total hip arthroplasty. We evaluated the air quality in orthopaedic operating theatres in southeastern Italy to determine the level of bacterial contamination as a risk factor for postoperative infection. Thirty-five hospitals with operating theatres focused on total knee and total hip arthroplasty participated. We sampled the air passively and actively before surgeries began for the day (at rest) and 15 min after the surgical incision ( in operation ). We evaluated bacterial counts, particle size, mixed vs turbulent airflow systems, the number of doors, number of door openings during procedures and number of people in the operating theatre. We found no bacterial contamination at rest for all sampling methods, and significantly different contamination levels at rest vs in operation . We found no association between the number of people in the surgical team and bacteria counts for both mixed and turbulent airflow systems, and low bacterial loads, even when doors were always open. Overall, the air quality sampling method and type of ventilation system did not affect air quality.

Keywords: operating theatre; orthopaedic surgery; surgical site infection; air quality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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