Hospitals and other healthcare settings present a unique challenge in managing the spread of infectious diseases, particularly given the potential for transmission of drug-resistant bacteria. One such bacteria is the multidrug-resistant superbug ‘carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE)’, which has been identified as a significant threat to patient safety in recent studies.
A detailed analysis of a multispecies outbreak at Toho University Omori Medical Center in Tokyo revealed that the risk of CPE spread is highest in hospital sinks. The finding is based on an event traceable back to 2016. The first reported case was a one-year-old boy admitted for cardiac disease. By March 2017, the superbug had infected a 15-year-old patient and 19 pediatric patients. Out of nine sinks found contaminated with CPE, six were located in the rooms with CPE-positive patients, while the remaining three were located in auxiliary areas, including a nurse center, a waste room, and an ice machine.
Despite intensive decontamination efforts, including replacing all sinks in the pediatric ward with new units, the problem persisted – pointing to a potential transfer of resistance mechanisms between bacterial species within the hospital environment. CPE are gut bacteria that can resist many commonly used antibiotics, making them particularly dangerous when they move out of the gut and enter the bloodstream, kidneys, bladder, or other tissues.
These findings highlight the importance of intensified infection prevention measures, especially in high-risk areas such as sinks and other water sources in hospitals. The advice to healthcare professionals and the public remains the same – practice good hand hygiene, avoid sharing personal items, and maintain a clean environment. However, the professionals need to focus more on potential hotspots for bacteria that go beyond patients themselves and address areas within the hospital infrastructure.