Table 3.
Summary of the prevalence of pathogens on mobile phones
| Phone belongs to | No. of phones contaminated with bacteria (%) | No. of phones contaminated with MRSA (%) | Facility | Country of study | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hospital doctors and staff (132), college faculty and staff (54), medical students (100) and control group (100) | 316/386 (81.8%) | 16 (4%) | Hospital | India | [130] |
| Nurses, 32 (17.5%) from laboratory workers, and 57 (31.1%) from health care staff | 179/183 (97.8%) | 17 (9.5%) | Hospital | Turkey | [129] |
| HCWs1 | 157/213 (73.7 %) | 1.4% | Intensive care units (ICUs), pediatric intensive care units (PICUs), and neonatal care units (NCUs) | Kuwait | [134] |
| Health care personnel | 65/120 (54.2%) | 11(16.4%) | General | India | [135] |
| Hands and mobile phones of HCWs | 16/27 (59%) | General | India | [136] | |
| Mobile phones of HCWs | 13/101 (13%) | 4/101 (4%) | General | Korea | [137] |
| Mobile phones with HCWs | 144/200 (72%) | 26/200 (13%) | General | India | [138] |
| Pagers of HCWs | 12/100 (12%) | 3 (3%) | General | USA | [139] |
| Students | 107/309 (34.6%) | ND2 | University | Japan | [140] |
| Patients, patients’ companions, visitors, HCW |
121/133 (90%) 58/67 (85.6%) |
ND | Hospital | Turkey | [141] |
| Patients & HCW | 40/40 (100%) | 21 (53%) | Hospital | Egypt | [142] |
| Veterinary students, technicians, residents/interns and clinical faculty | 3/123 (1%) | 1/123 (0.8%) | Veterinary teaching hospitals | Canada | [143] |
1HCW; health-care workers
2ND: not determined