BACTERIAL CONTAMINATIONS OF USED FACE MASKS COLLECTED FROM DIFFERENT CLINICAL SECTIONS IN A UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITAL DURING COVID -19 PANDEMIC CRISES IN NIGERIA

Abstract

This study was carried out to identify and characterize the bacteria and fungi present in used face masks, obtained from some clinical sections of University Teaching Hospital in Nigeria. The phenotypic; microbiological and biochemical identifications of the microorganisms were determined by the pour plate techniques using, nutrient agar according to established standard protocols. The results recorded a mean total bacterial count that ranged from 1.75 ± 0.12 log₁₀ CFU/ml to 4.36 ± 0.28 log₁₀ CFU/ml. However, the samples collected from the Anatomy section recorded the lowest bacterial count (1.75 ± 0.12 log₁₀ CFU/ml) while samples obtained from the Nursing section had the highest bacterial load (4.36 ± 0.28 log₁₀CFU/ml). The overall screening test showed the presence of three bacterial isolates: Peptococcus, Pseudomonas and Staphylococcus; Consequently, from the total 64 counted bacterial colonies, the frequency of occurrence was predominated by the Pseudomonas 40 (62.5 %) while, mild counts were respectively reported for Staphylococcus and Peptococcus 18 (28.1 %) and 06 (9.40 %).  Succinctly, this work has highlighted that, the underlying illnesses such as lung abscesses, asthma, otitis, pneumonia and sinusitis associated with the isolated organisms in this experiment are also directly linked or similar to the symptoms displayed in mild and severe cases of COVID-19 patients.