Evaluation of Dominant Microbial Air Pollutants in Hospital Environments and Nearby Areas in Albania

Nowadays, one of the most important and essential aspects of having a healthy and safe life is the air safety and its quality in indoor and outdoor environments. In the air, there are not only chemical pollutants but also biological ones, with specific impacts. Hospital environments are among the most likely to be affected by the microbiological contamination of the air; therefore its quality is particularly important. Pathogenic microorganisms, which may be present in the air, can cause nosocomial infections in hospitalized patients, with compromised immune system or other medical conditions. This paper reflects the evaluation of microbiological air contamination, in different hospital environments and nearby areas, in the city of Tirana. The microbial air quality has been monitored during the period of 2009–2018, performing evaluations every three years, in the same area and the same time of the year. In order to build a database for understanding the impact of developmental changes on the air microbiological loads, results of similar studies conducted earlier, during 2007 and 2008 were also taken into consideration. The above-mentioned period was selected because of the changes in the infrastructure and indoor environments of the monitored area, where many patients have been treated for years. Changes have been made over the years to hospital structures and surroundings, including recreational facilities, clinical service units, as well as main and connecting roads, etc. The obtained results, which were compared over the years, provided a clear view of the changing microbiological air loads, influenced by the improvements of indoor and outdoor areas. The morphological studies of the observed, isolated, purified and identified microorganisms revealed the presence of specific mold loads, with the dominance of the species of Aspergillus genus and those of the group Fungi imperfecti. Over the years, a decrease in the total number was observed (from 103 to 101), together with a smaller number of bacteria (1012), in the monitored environments