Bacterial colonization on Automated Teller Machines from selected Local Government Areas in Ibadan, Oyo State

Abstract

Background: Automated Teller Machines (ATM) are interactive physical platforms that respond to touch command of the user when an account holder inserts a coded bank card. They are operated with finger impressions of bank customers after insertion of the coded card. Objective: To determine the prevalence of isolates, quantify and determine the susceptibility of the isolates to conventional antibiotics and to test the efficacy of disinfectants on the bacterial isolates from these selected ATMs. Methods: Ten(10) ATMs were selected per Local Government Areas (LGA) in five LGA. Sterile swab impregnated with physiological saline was aseptically impressed and rolled over the keypad and screens of the ATMs. The swabs were inoculated in peptone broth and incubated for 24 to 48hours. The inoculums from the broth were streaked on five (5) different selective agar media and standard biochemical tests were used to confirm the bacterial isolates. Results: The prevalence rates of the bacterial agents found on the ATMs were as follows: Staphylococcus aureus (30; 60%), Coagulase-Negative Staphylococcus spp (10; 20%), Pseudomonas spp (16; 32%), and Streptococcus spp (20; 40%) respectively. Antibiogram was carried on biochemically identified isolates, and most of the isolates showed varied susceptibility to the antibiotics and the disinfectants tested. Conclusion: Multiple bacterial isolates found in this study have the potential to attain pathogenic status in compromised hosts and the possibility of transmission of these isolates from one user to another is a challenge of epidemiological magnitude.

Keywords

• automated teller machine
• bacterial contamination
• disinfectants
• ibadan