Utilização do método ATP bioluminescência na avaliação da eficácia da limpeza e desinfeção de superfícies em cuidados de saúde primários

Abstract

The risk of acquiring infections due to care provided at health centers, is now becoming a concern. In the treatment rooms during the execution of procedures, work surfaces may be contaminated and constitute themselves as potential reservoirs or sources of pathogenic and multiresistant microorganisms. The aim of this study was to verify the adequacy of the ATP bioluminescence method in evaluating the effectiveness of cleaning and disinfection of work surfaces in primary health care. We conducted an observational, longitudinal, prospective and analytical study. The ATP bioluminescence method proved to be easy to execute, deliver immediate and measurable results (in URL). Based on the values of 66 measurements taken after the cleaning and disinfection of the bench and couch in a treatment room, was established the benchmark of 144 URL, valid for the luminometer used. We evaluated the benches and couches of 32 treatment rooms in five health centers in the Algarve region. We compared the results obtained by visual and ATP bioluminescence methods, before and after cleaning and disinfecting these surfaces. Using the method of Bioluminescence was detected a higher percentage of “faults” (not acceptable) than by visual observation (dirty), which was more evident in the post-cleaning. Applying the McNemar test ( = 0,10; gl = 1), it was found that the visual and ATP bioluminescence methods produce results without significant differences before cleaning and disinfection of surfaces and with significant differences after. In conclusion, the visual inspection proved to be a method of subjective assessment of the effectiveness of the cleaning and disinfection of work surfaces, while the method ATP bioluminescence was found to be a good indicator of the evaluation.

Date of Award	2012
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Eugénia Maria Dores Maia Ferreira Castela (Supervisor)