Assessment of Gram-negative Bacteria on Computer Mouse at Sudanese Universities, Khartoum State

Abstract

Computers are ubiquitous and have been shown to be contaminated with potentially pathogenic bacteria in some communities. This study was undertaken to assess Gram-negative bacteria on computer mouse at Sudanese universities in Khartoum State. The study was conducted during the period from April to May, 2014. The computer mice were aseptically sampled using moistened sterile cotton swabs. The swabs were immersed in 2 ml sterile normal saline, and then 1 ml was taken for counting bacterial load using pour plate technique. Identification of Gram-negative bacteria was done by colonial morphology and fermentation pattern on MacConkey's agar, Gram’s stain and conventional biochemical tests. Out of 200 computer mice investigated, 123 (61.5%) yielded bacterial growth and 77 (38.5%) failed to demonstrate any bacterial growth. The average of bacterial load on computer mice was 56.26 X 104 CFU/ml. The results revealed that the CFU/ml were as follows: Neelin University 61.06X104,Al_mogtarbeen University 60X104, University of Science and Technology 57X104, Sudan University of Science and Technology 54.78X104 and Khartoum University 43.6X104. Fifteen (15)Gram-negative bacteria were identified. These were Enterobacterspp. 10 (66.7%), Pseudomonas spp. 2 (13.3%), Serratia spp. 2 (13.3%) and Klebsiellaspp. 1 (6.7%). The study concluded that the contamination rate of computer mice was high. Clinically important Gram-negative bacteria were recovered from computer mice. Hand-washing should be adopted before and after using the computers to reduce the microbial contamination. Computer mice should be cleaned with alcohol or other disinfectants on a regular basis.