We describe a pertussis outbreak among adult patients in a French general hospital following transmission from a healthcare worker. This index case transmitted pertussis to other healthcare workers, who, in turn, contaminated other staff and two immuno-suppressed patients. This raises questions about infection control.

Microbiological examinations of electronic faucets newly installed in a hospital kitchen revealed high bacteria counts and Pseudomonas aeruginosa during a 6-month period of observation. Our data suggest that the use of electronic faucets poses a potential risk for nosocomial infection in high-risk areas of hospitals.

This study evaluated personal digital assistant (PDA) microbial colonization before and after cleaning with alcohol. Samples from 75 PDAs were processed. Before cleaning, 96% of the samples were culture positive. After cleaning, 75% became culture negative. PDAs cleaned with an alcohol swab demonstrated significant reduction in colonization.

Two outbreaks of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii occurred in our hospital. The outbreak strains were eventually isolated from respiratory ventilators, an apparatus used to cool or warm patients, and four continuous veno-venous hemofiltration machines. Removing dust from the machines and replacing all dust filters brought the outbreaks to an end.

A case-control study of patients with and without confirmed UTI was performed to identify risk factors for nosocomial UTI. Duration of hospitalization, unit of admission, history of diabetes mellitus or debilitating diseases, and duration and number of urinary catheters were independently associated with increased risk of nosocomial UTIs.