Biofilms on medical instruments and surfaces: Do they interfere with instrument reprocessing and surface disinfection

...Biofilms are surface-attached communities of bacteria embedded in an extracellular matrix....Biofilms may form on implanted medical devices and human skin....Biofilms may form on water sources, dry surfaces, surgical instruments and medical devices....Biofilms contribute to prolonger survival of microbes and interfere with disinfection....Cleaning of.ßsurgical instruments and medical devices should precede disinfection....New technologies may reduce or disrupt biofilm formation.