Cell Phones andAcinetobacterTransmission

To the Editor: Nosocomial Acinetobacter baumannii is commonly acquired through cross-transmission because of its propensity to survive in the hospital environment and persistently contaminate fomites.Since cell phones are used increasingly by health personnel worldwide, we sought to determine their role in nosocomial transmission of multidrugresistant (MDR) A. baumannii.The study was conducted in a tertiary-care hospital in Israel, where MDR Acinetobacter spp. is endemic.Cell phones are used by personnel both for private communication and instead of traditional pagers.During 2002, 124 personnel (71 physicians, 54 nurses) were screened randomly for Acinetobacter spp. in a pointprevalence study; samples from hands of 119 personnel and 124 cell phones were cultured simultaneously for 2 months.Swabs from the back and sides of the cell phones were cultured. Cultures of hand samples were done by using the broth-bag technique (1).To assess cross-transmission between hands, cell phones, and patients, we studied 2 additional Acinetobacter spp.culture cohorts, nosocomial blood isolates from 2000 to 2002, and axilla and groin Acinetobacter spp.skin colonization in an intensive care unit (ICU) during 2002.Cohorts represent wards in which 73% of study personnel worked.Isolates were identified by the ID20NE system (bioMerieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France) without differentiation between A. baumannii and species 3 and 13TU.Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined for aminoglycosides, penicillins, cephalosporins, carbapenems, fluoroquinolones, tetracyclines, polymyxin E, and ampicillin/sulbactam by using