4
views
0
recommends
+1 Recommend
0 collections
    0
    shares
      • Record: found
      • Abstract: found
      • Article: found
      Is Open Access

      Isolation and Identification of Bacteria in Mosque Carpets: A Cross-Sectional Study in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

      letter

      Read this article at

      Bookmark
          There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

          Abstract

          Muslims tend to spend a lot of time inside mosques, special indoor environments for human gatherings, open to all age groups during prayer times, particularly elderly people who have a high prevalence of chronic diseases and associated risks. 1,2 Many studies have so far shown a significant association between the area per occupant and the concentration of bacteria, which may increase the risk of infections in such enclosed spaces. 3 However, limited information is available on the type of the isolated pathogenic bacteria from carpets of mosques globally. 4 We conducted this study to investigate the types of the bacterial contamination, if any, in prayer carpets in mosques in Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia. We also attempted to compare the contamination levels between male and female prayer halls. Using a cross-sectional design, 100 mosques representing most areas of Riyadh, were studied. Using a cluster random sampling, mosques where all the five daily prayers are performed and which have an ablution area were selected from the five regions of Riyadh—middle, northern, southern, eastern, and western areas. Twenty mosques were selected randomly from each of the five regions. Samples were obtained from selected areas of carpets in the main entrance and the first row, as these areas have the highest load of worshipers in both men and women praying sections by a trained research assistant in August and September 2017, using sterile cotton swabs. The swabs were moistened with sterile gel (Medical Disposable Manufacturing Co., Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) and transported immediately in Stuart transport medium to the microbiology lab. Separate cotton swabs and transport media were used for each area. Samples were inoculated on three media—blood agar for 24–48 hrs, MacConkey agar for 24–48 hrs, and Sabouraud dextrose agar (Saudi Prepared Media Laboratory Co. Ltd., Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) for 24–72 hrs. Any growth on blood agar was only identified by Gram stain, catalase, and coagulase. Catalase-positive coagulase-negative Gram-positive cocci were considered “coagulase-negative staphylococci.” Catalase-positive coagulase-negative Gram-positive tetrads were identified by morphology: yellow colonies on blood agar were considered “micrococci.” Catalase-positive coagulase-positive Gram-positive cocci were further processed by the MicroScan system (Abdulla Fouad Holding Co., serial number 3967402, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) for full identification and sensitivity; they were reported either as S. aureus or methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Furthermore, catalase-positive coagulase-negative Gram-positive bacilli were reported as Bacillus spp. However, if a Gram-positive bacteria grew on both blood agar and MacConkey agar, the bacteria were further processed by MicroScan for full identification and sensitivity and considered either E. coli or Pseudomonas. No significant difference in the frequency or type of the isolated bacteria was found between men and women praying halls (p=0.103), and also between the main entrance and the first row (p=0.803). Of all the samples taken, 94% were positive for different bacterial organisms; 56.9% of the samples were Gram-positive cocci; 53.6% were Gram-positive bacilli. Gram-negative bacilli accounted for 31.7% of the samples. No bacterial growth was found in 5.6% of the samples taken. The most frequently isolated organisms were coagulase-negative staphylococci (59.4%), Bacillus spp. (56.9%), and Micrococcus 42.7% (Fig 1). Other potentially pathogenic bacteria like Shigella (0.3%), MRSA (0.3%), and Yersinia enterocolitica (0.3%) were isolated from the eastern, southern, and western parts of Riyadh, respectively. E. coli (0.7%) and Klebsiella (1.0%) were cultured from the central region of Riyadh. Figure 1 Types of bacteria isolated from the carpets of mosques in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (n=288) This high frequency of the isolated microorganisms could reflect the longstanding presence of carpets inside the studied mosques and the methods used for their cleansing. 5 This highlights the need for establishing new programs to improve hygiene in mosques, good-quality ablution facilities, and raising awareness of worshipers about hygiene. These programs should include different strategies, for instance, setting a timetable to clean mosque carpets periodically and creating health educational material, including banners and brochures that can be distributed among the worshipers. Conflicts of Interest None declared.

          Related collections

          Most cited references4

          • Record: found
          • Abstract: found
          • Article: not found

          Health risks at the Hajj

          Summary Annually, millions of Muslims embark on a religious pilgrimage called the “Hajj” to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The mass migration during the Hajj is unparalleled in scale, and pilgrims face numerous health hazards. The extreme congestion of people and vehicles during this time amplifies health risks, such as those from infectious diseases, that vary each year. Since the Hajj is dictated by the lunar calendar, which is shorter than the Gregorian calendar, it presents public-health policy planners with a moving target, demanding constant preparedness. We review the communicable and non-communicable hazards that pilgrims face. With the rise in global travel, preventing disease transmission has become paramount to avoid the spread of infectious diseases, including SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), avian influenza, and haemorrhagic fever. We examine the response of clinicians, the Saudi Ministry of Health, and Hajj authorities to these unique problems, and list health recommendations for prospective pilgrims.
            Bookmark
            • Record: found
            • Abstract: found
            • Article: not found

            Carpeting in hospitals: an epidemiological evaluation.

            Epidemiological and microbiological studies were conducted in a hospital room with carpet (CR) and in one with carpet (NCR). Microbiological profiles were determined with specimens obtained from patients admitted to these rooms. Patient records were reviewed to note infection status and other case identities. Eleven-millimeter cylindrical core samples of carpet were obtained, and swab template techniques were used on the bare floor for subsequent enumeration and identification of contaminating microorganisms. In each sampling period, higher microbial counts per square inch (1 in(2) = ca 6.452 cm(2)) were measured for the carpet than for the bare floor. Recovery rates of Enterobacter spp., Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Escherichia coli were higher from carpet samples than from bare floor samples. Typable organisms (such as E. coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae, and Staphylococcus aureus) obtained from patients were also more frequently recovered from the carpet than from the bare flooring. Patients who stayed in the CR were shown to be colonized with the same types of organisms as those initially recovered from the carpet. However, no statistically significant differences were found in patients in the CR versus NCR in colonization with all typable and nontypable organisms first found on the floor. Disease in patients was found not to be associated with organisms found as contaminants of the carpet or the bare floor. Air above carpeting contained more consistent concentrations of organisms than air above the bare flooring.
              Bookmark
              • Record: found
              • Abstract: not found
              • Article: not found

              Impact of dwelling characteristics on concentrations of bacteria, fungi, endotoxin and total inflammatory potential in settled dust

                Bookmark

                Author and article information

                Journal
                Int J Occup Environ Med
                Int J Occup Environ Med
                Int J Occup Environ Med
                IJOEM
                The International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
                Shiraz: NIOC Health Organization
                2008-6520
                2008-6814
                April 2019
                01 April 2019
                : 10
                : 2
                : 94-96
                Affiliations
                1Department of Dermatology, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
                2Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, King Khalid University Hospital and King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
                3College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
                Author notes
                Correspondence to Ghadah Alhammad, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia E-mail: ghadah.alhammad@ 123456gmail.com
                Article
                10.15171/ijoem.2019.1569
                6524740
                31041927
                81a4434b-6894-45b2-9a82-ddc12f42cc0a
                Copyright @ 2019

                This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

                History
                : 16 January 2019
                : 10 February 2019
                Page count
                Figures: 1, References: 5, Pages: 3
                Categories
                Correspondence

                Comments

                Comment on this article