Public countertops as sources of microbial infections in Calabar, Nigeria

Abstract

Contamination of inanimate objects and environmental surfaces by microorganisms plays a significant role in the transmission of infection. This study was carried out to ascertain the role of countertops as infection source. A total of 240 public counters including wood granite, tiles and plastics in different establishments were screened for the presence of potential bacterial and fungal pathogens using standard microbiological and biochemical methods. Countertops were swabbed using sterile moist swabs and cultured using peptone water, Blood Agar, CLED, and Sabouraud dextrose agar. Of the 240 countertops examined, 220 (91.6%) harbored microbes with Police Stations counters ranking highest 50 (100%) followed by Banks counters 58 (97.0%) while Bakeries counters had the least 10 (66.7%). The prevalence of microbes by location statistically significant (p= 0.0001). Wooden countertops carried more microbes 35 (97.2%) than other countertops p=0.3295). Generally, the studied countertops carried more bacteria (90.8%) than fungi (12.5%). Countertops of banks carried more bacteria (96.6%) while those of bakeries carried the least (66.7%) whereas countertops of police station harbored more fungi (24.0%) than those in other establishments with eateries counters carrying no fungi at all. Staphylococcus aureus was the most frequently encountered bacteria (95.0%) followed by Proteus mirabilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (1.8% each), and Shigella species (1.3%). Candida albicans dominated among the fungal isolates (80.0%) followed by Aspergillus (13.3%) and Trichophyton rubrum (6.6%). This study has demonstrated high prevalence of potential microbial pathogens on public counters which may constitute a public health risk to users. Regular cleaning, periodical microbiological assessment of public countertops and cautiousness whenever interacting with environment is recommended.