Rate of bacterial contamination of electrotherapy pads used in the physiotherapy clinics

Introduction: Careful planning on health care may prevent the spread of disease and reduce theexpense for treatment. Regarding the importance of health care in the clinical centers includingphysiotherapy clinics, this study was designed to investigate the rate of bacterial contamination ofelectrotherapy’s pads which use in the physiotherapy clinics of Semnan University of Medical Sciences(Iran).Material and Methods: 20 electrotherapy’s pads were sampled from three physiotherapy clinics. Inorder to find any contamination, the samples were cultured in the Medical School’s microbiologylaboratory. A questionnaire was used to collect data about the method of washing and sterilizing used inthe physiotherapy clinics.Results: The laboratory results showed all sampled pads were infected, while different pattern ofcontamination were seen among clinics. Normal skin flora of bacteria was found in the sampled padsfrom two clinics that used normal washing method and Whitex sterilizing method, while more varieties ofcontamination including; Klebsiella, Serratia and Enterobacteria were found in the other clinic that usedjust normal washing method.Conclusion: The results indicated that the all sampled pads were contaminated and this could beconsidered as a potential factor for transfer contamination between patients and therapists. These resultsconfirm the importance of using substituting methods such as disposable pad, sterile electrolyte jell, andor using standard sterilizing method to disinfect the electrotherapy pads. More research is needed tocontrol and prevent the ways of transfer contaminations in the physiotherapy clinics