ArticleCureus2017
Surface Microbiology of Smartphone Screen Protectors Among Healthcare Professionals.
Article in Cureus, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- High efficiency of 70% isopropanol in reducing microbial contamination on healthcare workers' smartphone surfaces: a pre-post study in Peru.Antimicrobial resistance and infection control · 2026Article
- A quantitative microbial risk assessment for touchscreen user interfaces using an asymmetric transfer gradient transmission mode.PloS one · 2022Article
- Prevalence of bacterial contamination of touchscreens and posterior surfaces of smartphones owned by healthcare workers: a cross-sectional study.BMC infectious diseases · 2021Article
- Modelling disease transmission from touchscreen user interfaces.Royal Society open science · 2021Article
- Review of microbial touchscreen contamination for the determination of reasonable ultraviolet disinfection doses.GMS hygiene and infection control · 2021Review
- Taking Screenshots of the Invisible: A Study on Bacterial Contamination of Mobile Phones from University Students of Healthcare Professions in Rome, Italy.Microorganisms · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe use of smartphones with touch screens has become a norm for healthcare professionals (HCP). The risk of smart screen contamination has been proven, and guidelines are available to deal with possible contamination. A large number of smartphone users apply plastic or glass screen protectors onto their mobile phone screens to prevent scratches. However, these materials are not scratch proof, and their antipathogenic properties have not been studied.
methodsWe have conducted a study to determine the frequency of smartphone screen protector contamination and compared the data with contamination on the bare area on the same mobile screens. The sample size included only HCPs working in acute care settings and having at least eight hours of exposure time every day.
resultsA total of 64 samples were collected, which reported 62.5% (n = 40/64) positive culture swabs from the protected areas of the screen and 45.3% (n = 29/64) from the unprotected area of the screen. Micrococcus and Gram-negative rods grew only on samples taken from the protected area whereas the bare area showed no such growth. There was no statistically significant difference in the frequency based on smart screen size, duration of use during duty hours, or the setting where it was used.
conclusionsSmartphone screen protectors from healthcare providers may harbor pathogenic bacteria, especially in acute care settings. Coagulase-negative Staphylococci followed by Bacillus species were the most commonly yielded bacteria among house officers and postgraduate trainees in the present study.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.