الفهرس 
INTRODUCTIONOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Swimming is an excellent way to get the physical activity and health benefits needed
for a healthy life. It is a fun, active, and a healthy way to spend leisure time especially in
summer, where users can relax and beat the summer heat. So that the importance of
swimming pools as a recreational tool acquires special importance.
Pool users are the primary source of microorganisms present in the pool water from
body fluids, solids and wastes including urine, mucus, saliva, sweat, scales and fecal
matter.
A vast diversity of microorganisms can be found in pools and similar RW
environments, which may be introduced by a feacal or a non-feacal way.
P. aeruginosa is an important agent of opportunistic infection in aquatic
environments. Swimming pool water is an important reservoir for P. aeruginosa and is a
pathway for bacterial transmission.
The present study aimed to study the occurrence and the antimicrobial resistance of
P. aeruginosa in swimming pools water.
The study was carried out during a two months period, from the beginning of June
2014 to the end of July 2014, on a total of 120 water samples from 10 different swimming
pools (Three indoor pools designated as A, B and C and seven outdoor pools designated as
D, E, F, G, H, I and J). Twelve samples were collected from each swimming pool.
Water samples were aseptically collected in 500 ml sterile bottles. These bottles
contained sodium thiosulfate for all water samples. Physical and chemical parameters
(temperature, residual chlorine and pH) were done at swimming pool side during sample
collection.
All the collected swimming pool water samples were examined as follows:
1) Enumeration of viable heterotrophic bacteria by HPC using standard pour plate
method.
2) Enumeration of TC, E. coli and P. aeruginosa by MF using chromogenic agar media.
3) Antimicrobial susceptibility testing for P. aeruginosa isolates.
The results of this study can be summarized as follows:
1) According to the Egyptian standards, out of the 120 examined swimming pool water
samples 6.7% were acceptable for all parameters.
2) The overall percentage of acceptability was higher in outdoor than in indoor
swimming pool water samples (7.1% and 5.6%) respectively.
3) Out of the 120 examined swimming pool water samples, 40 (33.3%) of the examined
water samples conformed to the Egyptian bacteriological standards and 15 (12.3%)
to the chemical standards.
4) E. coli was the most complying indicator (94.2%) followed by P. aeruginosa
(78.3%), TC (54.2%) and HPC (41.0%).
Summary and conclusion
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5) The complying percentages of residual chlorine and pH were 42.5% and 31.7%
respectively.
6) Residual chlorine was negatively correlated with all bacterial indicators. This
correlation was statistically significant with HPC, TC and P. aeruginosa.
7) pH was positively correlated with all bacterial indicators. This correlation was
statistically significant with HPC, TC and P. aeruginosa.
8) Regarding P. aeruginosa, outdoor swimming pools showed higher acceptability
percentage than the indoor ones (83.3% and 66.7% respectively).
9) Swimming pools E and G were totally free of P. aeruginosa, while swimming pool C
showed the lowest acceptability (41.7%).
10) P. aeruginosa is positively correlated with pH, HPC, TC and E. coli, while it is
negatively correlated with chlorine. All these results were statistically significant.
11) Regarding P. aeruginosa antimicrobial susceptibility, Aztreonam showed the highest
resistance rate (84.8%), while Piperacillin-Tazobactam, Cefepime, Imipenem and
gentamycin showed the least resistance rate (7.7% each)
12) Nine (34.6%) P. aeruginosa isolates were multidrug resistant.
It can be concluded from this study that:
1. Chlorine and pH are good operational indices in the quality control of swimming pool
water.
2. The percentages of acceptability of swimming pool water regarding all examined
parameters collectively were very low according to the Egyptian guidelines.
3. The examined swimming pool water samples were found to be of poor sanitary quality
(HPC was the least complying indicator with the Egyptian standards), but
contamination was not mostly of faecal origin (E. coli was the most complying
indicator).
4. The occurrence of multidrug resistant P. aeruginosa in swimming pools denotes a public health problem.