Cell Phones May Spread Infections

CHaN_316 writes "Yahoo is running an article talking about how cell phones from health workers are helping spread dangerous infections in hospitals. 'They found that 12 percent of healthcare providers' cell phones were contaminated with [Acinetobacter baumannii]. The results are disturbing because [it] has the propensity to develop resistance to almost all available antibiotics ... Cell phones provide a large dry surface that allows survival of A. baumannii--it requires no nutrients ... [it] is found in intensive care units, and the mortality rate among infected patients is very high -- between 50 and 60 percent.' The hospital that conducted this research no longer allows the use of cell phones, and are switching to devices that don't require hand contact like pagers." So how long before someone develops a cell phone that can be dunked in alcohol or run through the autoclave to sterilize it?

Comments

Re:Ya

[KozmoStevnNaut]

You just described my whole family :)

We've never had any diseases more serious than the flu in our family, and none of us are allergic to anything.

My parents were always very insistent that I went outside at least 2 hours each day. Back then it was annoying, but I thank them for it now.

Re:How about irradiation?

[benjonson]

Wouldn't simply irradiating the cel phone do the trick?

At least then we could put to rest the question of whether or not cell phones cause brain damage.