[The role of mobile communication devices in the spread of infections]

Mobile communication devices have an invaluable feature of communication within hospital, and they may support certain aspects of clinical diagnosis and education. However, there may be a risk for contamination of these devices with various pathogens. The aim of the authors was to perform a systematic review on the potential role of mobile communication devices in the dissemination of pathogens and to identify effective prevention measures. A detailed literature search was conducted using PubMed and ScienceDirect databases for papers published in English between January, 2004 and August, 2014. With the use of specific search term combinations 30 of the 216 articles met the inclusion criteria. It was found that only 8% of healthcare workers routinely cleaned their mobile communication devices resulting in a high rate of contamination (40-100%). Coagulase-negative Staphylococci and Staphylococcus aureus were the most commonly identified bacteria and most of them were methicillin resistant (10-95.3%). This systematic review identified effective interventions to reduce bacterial contamination risks including staff education, hand hygiene and regular decontamination of mobile communication devices.