مجلة الاطروحة العلمية المحكمة الاطروحه للنشر العلمي
مدى انتشار التلوث البكتيري في مستحضرات التجميل المستخدمة من قبل طلبة الجامعة في مدينة السماوة ، العراق
اصالة محمد الخفاجي
قسم الطب الشرعي / كلية العلوم / جامعة ساوه / المثنى / العراق
Abstract
Women attending university utilise cosmetics regularly and on a large scale; however, there is limited research examining the potential for these products to act as a means of transmitting bacteria among users, especially when purchased from undeveloped countries in the Middle East with minimal funding & /or control processes in place. The potential for bacterial contamination from cosmetics is compounded by the hot & humid conditions of Al-Samawa, there are additional concerns regarding the lack of a regulatory process for controlling aged &/or contaminated imported cosmetic products being sold in local markets.
Aim: Our study is focused on answering the following questions: (1) What is the prevalence of bacterial contamination associated with cosmetics as reported by female university students attending college in Al-Samawa, Iraq? (2) What are the different species of bacteria that contaminate these cosmetics? (3) What is the antibiotic resistance profile of bacterial isolates derived from contaminated cosmetics? (4) What are some of the risk factors associated with cosmetics becoming contaminated?
Methods: A cross-sectional microbiological study was conducted in Al-Samawa over a 7-month period from Oct 2022 -April 2023, taking a total of 290 cosmetic samples (lipstick, mascara, eyeliner, foundation, eyeshadow, blush, lip gloss & concealer) currently being used by 150 students from one private university and analyzed by using standard plating techniques, Gram staining, cultural & biochemical identification methods as well as antibiotic resistance testing post disk diffusion approaches according to the CLSI.
Findings: Of the 290 cosmetic samples tested, 201 (69%) showed evidence of bacterial presence. The highest rate of contamination in cosmetics that were analyzed was found in lip gloss (81.8%) followed by mascara (77.5%) and eyeliner (73.7%). A total of 261 bacterial organisms were isolated; Staphylococcus aureus (24.9%) was the most common, followed by Staphylococcus epidermidis (18.8%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (14.2%), Escherichia coli (11.1%) & Bacillus cereus (10.0%). Antibiotic testing showed high rates of resistance to ampicillin and erythromycin, with 63% of all S. aureus methicillin-resistant (MRSA). Key risk factors for cosmetic contamination include using aged products (> 6 months), sharing cosmetics (OR 5.32), not cleaning makeup applicators (OR 4.95), and purchasing cosmetics from unregulated markets (OR 4.77).
Conclusions: The high bacterial load in cosmetics used at the private university in Al-Samawa also includes clinically relevant pathogenic bacteria, e.g., MRSA. Therefore, there are urgent calls for health promotion reports targeted at health care consumers, consumers of cosmetics, and responsible &/or health regulatory agencies to strengthen importation regulations and develop more effective national regulations focused on the safety of cosmetics.
Keywords: bacterial contamination; cosmetics; Staphylococcus aureus; microbial safety