We used a self-reporting system to compare symptom frequency of hospital personnel with coronavirus disease 2019 before and after the emergence of the Omicron variant. Omicron was more likely to result in asymptomatic carriage (7% vs 12%; P = .009), and fewer symptoms were observed in those with booster vaccination.

We implemented preprocedure severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing for cancer patients. The overall positivity rate was 0.3%. Preprocedure testing may be limited to operative procedures as community rates of SARS-CoV-2 exceed 7%. Nonoperative aerosol-generating procedures may be performed without preprocedure testing, wearing the appropriate personal protective equipment.

The risk factors of environmental contamination by SARS-CoV-2 are largely unknown. We analyzed 1,320 environmental samples obtained from COVID-19 patients over 1 year. The risk factors for contamination of COVID-19 patients’ surrounding environment were higher viral load in the respiratory tract and shorter duration from symptom onset to sample collection.

In October 2017, the National Poll on Healthy Aging surveyed a nationally representative sample of 2,007 adults aged 50–80 years to assess attitudes toward influenza (flu) vaccination policies in long-term care facilities. Support for requiring vaccinations was lowest for visitors. Policy makers can use these findings to develop sustainable vaccination strategies.

Flocked and foam swabs were used to sample five healthcare pathogens from three sizes of steel and plastic coupons; 26 cm2, 323 cm2, and 645 cm2. As surface area increased, 1–2 log10 decrease in recovered organisms (P < .05) was observed. Sampling 26-cm2 yielded the optimal median percent of pathogens recovered.

A novel 1-step anionic surfactant disinfectant was effective against Candida auris isolates from the 4 major phylogenetic clades as well as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and the enveloped virus bacteriophage Phi6. This anionic surfactant disinfectant may be a useful addition to the disinfectant products available for use against C. auris.

We analyzed the effectiveness of manual cleaning protocols performed on high-speed dental handpieces, using protein identification by fluorescence. Although one protocol was able to able to lower the amount of protein, >40% of the handpieces showed amounts of residual protein at unacceptable levels.