Are ball pits located in physical therapy clinical settings a source of pathogenic microorganisms?

Clinical, therapeutic ball pits commonly used by physical therapists to provide sensory stimulation to children were investigated for microbial colonization. Due to the permissive and hospitable environment provided by these ball pits, microorganisms can accumulate to levels that increase the ease of transmission to exposed individuals. Our study found considerable microbial colonization in ball pits located in clinical settings, including 8 opportunistic pathogenic bacteria and 1 opportunistic pathogenic yeast. (C) 2018 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.