Mobile phones have become an integral part of modern society, and could possibly constitute a public health risk for microbial transmission. This literature review examines the microbial presence on mobile phones in community and health care settings.

Studies reviewed included dates from January 2005 to December 2019, that looked at mobile phones tested for bacteria, fungi and/or viruses, and whether the sample was from a healthcare or general community setting.

A total of fifty-six studies from twenty-four countries were included with bacteria reported in fifty-four out of the fifty-six studies, along with sixteen also reporting presence of fungi. The most commonly identified bacteria where Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative Staphylococci, along with Escherichia coli were present in over a third of studies in community and healthcare settings. Over a third of healthcare settings also had phones test positive with Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Acinetobacter species, and Bacillus species.

This review exposes the potential role of mobile phones as a ‘Trojan horse’ that could contribute to the transmission of microbial infections in epidemics and pandemics.

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Role of mobile phones in microbial transmission