Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 14, 2026
Collection and Extraction of Occupational Air Samples for Analysis of Fungal DNA
Published on: May 2, 2018
Evaluation of fungal contamination in operating rooms using a dusting cloth pad: comparison among different sampling
Daniela D'Alessandro1, Franco Cerquetani, Maria Grazia Deriu
1Department of Civil Building and Environmental Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy. daniela.dalessandro@uniroma1.it
Abstract:
To evaluate microbial contamination in hospitals environments, several methods are available, each one having its limitations. Therefore, the choice of system to use is open. This study compares the ability of a dusting cloth pad (DC pad) with 2 other methods (Rodac contact plate and air sampling) to detect contamination because of filamentous fungi in operating rooms, performing 110 sampling campaigns in hospitals of 3 Italian cities. Overall, 96% of the DC pad samples were positive compared with 51% of Rodac plates (P < .0001) and 35% of air samples (P < .0001). Authors conclude that the DC pad improves the ability to detect an environmental contamination of filamentous fungi.
