Can a simple thing like replacing hospital doorknobs be
an effective weapon for fighting the dreaded methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) superbug? According
to Dr Jonathan Noyce and Professor Bill Keevil of Southampton
University, UK, the answer is 'yes.'
Dr Noyce and Professor Keevil believe
that the modern world's monkey-like obsession with shiny
stainless steel doorknobs and mirror-like push plates
on doors could be dangerous � especially in the case
of hospitals. They presented their findings at a recent
meeting of the American Society for Microbiology in
New Orleans. The team discovered that stainless steel
could be a welcoming abode for MRSA, which was able
to live on these lustrous surfaces for up to 72 hours.
As a result, it had the potential to spread to other
surfaces and for those who are vulnerable to infection,
MRSA could prove fatal. They pointed out, however, that
with brass or copper, the lifespan was only 90 minutes
and hospitals would benefit if they were to replace
stainless steel knobs with either of these.
VALLEY
OF THE MICROBES
Professor Keevil also notes that although stainless
steel can be easily cleaned, it doesn't mean that MRSA
is easily destroyed. The steel can scratch, which makes
it very attractive for bacteria since they have a place
to hide in these tiny crevices. As he likes to put it,
a scratch on a doorknob is like a "microscopic valley"
and the MRSA superbug will make this valley its home.
But don't call the locksmith just
yet. Replacing all those doorknobs would be very costly
indeed and while hospitals struggle to acquire the more
important equipment, new knobs are probably not at the
top of anyone's shopping list. And others argue that
switching to the old-style brass handles won't really
affect MRSA since this method only scratches the surface
of the problem.
Dr Elizabeth Bryce, director of
the Community and Hospital Infection Control Association
(CHICA) at Vancouver General Hospital, was a little
surprised by this new technique to fight MRSA. "Think
of all the other surfaces there are � we can't very
well replace all of them as well," she says.
SOAP
DISH IT OUT
For Dr Bryce, the root of the problem lies in poor hygiene.
"People come into hospitals contaminated and unknowingly
spread MRSA," she says bluntly. She argues that the
best way to keep MRSA at bay is through education. "Getting
people to wash their hands as soon as they enter the
hospital and also when they leave will really get to
the heart of the matter," she says.
Dr Noyce and colleagues couldn't
agree more, but they're sticking to their non-stainless
steel guns when it comes to those brass knobs.
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