Table 1.
Assessments of swimming pools (SPs) located in tropical and subtropical countries.
| Location/Country | Positive Results | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| North Africa, Egypt | The authors suggest artificial plastic SPs as a prophylactic measure against infection with schistosomiasis in developing countries. | [21] |
| North Africa, Assiut Town, Egypt | In a survey of 2 SPs, which included 50 water samples Dermatophytes, Aspergyllus sp., Penicillium, Altenaria, Syncephalastrium, Mucor were detected. | [22] |
| North Africa, Alexandria, Egypt | Assessment of the environmental and health aspects of some SPs. Presence of pathogens indicated. | [23] |
| North Africa, Alexandria, Egypt | Assessment of 5 SPs, 30 water samples. Compliance of pool water with regulations regarding bacterial indicators was 56.7%. In 10% of the samples Cryptosporidium oocysts and Giardia cysts were detected. | [24] |
| Middle East, Ein Feshka, Dead Sea, Israel | Medical report of 10 cases of Mycobacterium marinum mimicking leismaniasis. Most of the infections were contracted in natural bathing pools. | [25] |
| Middle East, West Bank, Palestine | An assessment of 58 water samples, collected from 46 SPs. All unacceptable according to regulations. 21/23 water samples were positive for Salmonella spp. | [26] |
| Middle East, Amman, Jordan | Assessment of 85 SPs in Amman. Compliance of the pools’ water with the microbial parameters was 56.5%. | [27] |
| Middle East, Nablus district, Palestine | In a survey of 3 SPs, 50 keratinophilic fungal species were recovered. The most frequently isolated species were Acremonium strictum & Cladosporium cladiosporioides. The most abundant species were Acremonium strictum, and Aspergillus flavus. | [28] |
| Sub Saharan Africa, Ghana | In a survey of 7 SPs, faecal coliforms, E. coli, total heterotrophic bacteria were recovered from all SPs; E. coli O157:H7 were recovered from 2 SPs. Antibiotic resistance tests revealed the highest resistance was in sulfamethoxazole (46%). | [29] |
| Asia, Guangzhou, China | A survey of 39 municipal SPs revealed protozoa (12.8%), P. aeruginosa (69.2%), total coliforms, E. coli (4%), Cryptosporidium & Giardia (12.8%), E. coli O157, Shigella, and Salmonella. | [30] |
| Asia, Ahwaz Iran | In a survey of 10 indoor SPs, 593 water and environmental samples (shower areas, dressing rooms, pool walls, slippers) revealed 372 saprophytic fungi species and 32 yeasts. The most common were Aspergillus & Penicillium. | [31] |
| Asia, Shahrekord City, Iran | In a seasonal assessment of 2 indoor SPs (459 pool water, shower & dressing room samples) faecal coliform Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Legionella, Escherichia coli and Heterotrophic Plate Count values exceeded regulations. The most prevalent fungi were in the showers, the most frequent being Aspergillus spp. (48.91%). | [32] |