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Monitoring of airborne fungi during the second wave of COVID-19 in selected wards of the referral university hospital in southeastern Iran

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Abstract

Microbiological monitoring of the air hospital is essential for prevention and control, due to the possible airborne route of infection transmission, especially in high-risk wards. This study aimed to monitor the airborne fungi during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in selected wards of the biggest university educational hospital in Kerman, southeastern Iran. This study was conducted in 11 different wards, separated into the patient room and nursing station, of the Afzalipour hospital from May to August 2021. Fungal isolates were characterized to the species level by conventional and sequencing methods. Out of 93 obtained fungal colonies, 70 (75.3%) isolates were filamentous and 23 (24.7%) isolates were yeast. Aspergillus species were the predominant fungal isolates among the filamentous colonies (n=19; 27.1%), and Naganishia albida (formerly Cryptococcus albidus) was identified as the most common yeast isolate (n=13/23; 56.8%). The infectious ward was the most contaminated unit (n=19/93), while the least contaminated units were the neonatal intensive care unit (n=3/93), and oncology (n=3/93). The statistical findings displayed that the number of fungal isolates in patients' rooms is significantly higher than in nurses' stations (p-value=0.013). Our study demonstrated the presence of diverse fungal species in all wards of the hospital. Considering the presence of airborne fungi in hospitals and related public health problems is one of the critical issues for health systems management. In this regard, efficient monitoring of airborne fungi might play an influential role in hospital infection control and surveillance, particularly in high-risk hospitalization patients in critical wards.

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the head of Afzalipour Hospital, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran, for supporting this project.

Funding

This study was financially supported by Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Grant No.: 400000268. Partial financial support was received from the Afzalipour Hospital, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Environmental Science and Technology Research Center, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran

    Mahdi Hajhosseini

  2. Medical Mycology and Bacteriology Research Center, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Mahdi Hajhosseini, Azam Amanizadeh & Setareh Agha Kuchak Afshari

  3. Leishmaniasis Research Center, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Iraj Sharifi & Mehdi Bamorovat

  4. Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Health, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Ali Karamoozian

  5. Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, Afzalipour Faculty of Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Azam Amanizadeh & Setareh Agha Kuchak Afshari

Authors
  1. Mahdi Hajhosseini
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  2. Iraj Sharifi
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  3. Mehdi Bamorovat
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  4. Ali Karamoozian
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  5. Azam Amanizadeh
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  6. Setareh Agha Kuchak Afshari
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Contributions

Mahdi Hajhosseini and Setareh Agha Kuchak Afshari designed and completed the experiments. Isolation and identification of fungi were conducted by Mahdi Hajhosseini, Azam Amanizadeh, and Setareh Agha Kuchak Afshari. Data collection and analysis and writing the first draft of the manuscript were carried out by Iraj Sharifi, Mehdi Bamorovat, Ali Karamoozian, and Setareh Agha Kuchak Afshari. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Setareh Agha Kuchak Afshari.

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Ethics statement

The Research Ethics Committee of Kerman University of Medical Sciences approved the study (Ethics no: IR.KMU.REC.1400.353).

Consent to participate

Consent to participate in this study from the Afzalipour Hospital was obtained.

Competing interests

The authors declare they have no competing interests.

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Hajhosseini, M., Sharifi, I., Bamorovat, M. et al. Monitoring of airborne fungi during the second wave of COVID-19 in selected wards of the referral university hospital in southeastern Iran. Environ Monit Assess 195, 1132 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-023-11791-9

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