Using a simplified ATP algorithm to improve data reliability and improve cleanliness standards for surface and...

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Infection Control
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Variability in rapid Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) testing can impact surface cleanliness assessments.
• A cleaning intervention step (CIS) is utilized to verify the cleanability of surfaces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To improve an algorithm for Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) testing to mitigate variability in surface cleanliness measurements.
• To assess the effectiveness of duplicate ATP sampling and a cleaning intervention step (CIS) in determining surface hygiene.

Main Methods:

• Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) testing was performed on 421 environmental surfaces, medical devices, and implements.
• Duplicate ATP sampling was conducted on adjacent surfaces.
• A cleaning intervention step (CIS) was applied to 270 surfaces using aseptic techniques.

Main Results:

• 68.5% of surfaces were classified as clean, 13.5% as dirty, and 18% as equivocal based on initial ATP results.
• Duplicate testing revealed a 10% false negative rate and identified significant variability in equivocal results.
• The cleaning intervention step (CIS) demonstrated that cleaning could be improved on 88.5% of tested surfaces (P<0.001).

Conclusions:

• The simplified ATP testing algorithm enhances real-time discrimination of surface cleanliness levels.
• Duplicate swab sampling effectively mitigates uncontrolled variability in ATP test results.
• The cleaning intervention step (CIS) offers a nuanced understanding of measurable surface cleanliness, improving overall hygiene certainty.