Fluid fragmentation from hospital toilets

One mode of transmission for C. difficile, as well as other pathogens, which has received little attention is the potential air contamination by pathogen-bearing droplets emanating from toilets. So far, modern mitigation strategies focused on cleaning hospital surfaces with products such as bleach, ignoring air contamination. Though toilets have been in use for over a century, little is known about the fluid dynamics governing their potential for pathogen-bearing droplet generation. Best et al (2012) [2] reported finding spores in the air an hour after flushing. This is a major concern given that modern hospital toilets in North America do not have lids and are cleared using high flow rate flushes.