No, not in its current form. The sensitivity of the Mycometer® surface Bacteria method has been targeted so as to fit criteria that meet the needs of the flooding and sewage backflow remediation industry. Here the clean criteria has been targeted to distinguish between visually clean and visually dirty surfaces in normal buildings. A visually clean surface in a non problem building is not necessarily as clean as would be needed in e.g. a hospital operation room.

Yes. Not having to wait for lab results allows for rapid demobilization of remediation barriers and containment systems,and enables the re-occupancy of an area that much faster. Additionally, the Mycometer® surface Bacteria method can be used to evaluate the efficacy of different methods for cleaning contaminated materials. A test cleaning assessment using the Mycometer® surface Bacteria method enables remediators and consultants to quickly, and empirically, identify materials that can and cannot be cleaned.

Traditionally, assessment after flooding events has been performed using cultivation of coliform and fecal indicator bacteria like E. coli. Assessments have focused on the risk of infection as the main health concern. This approach is inadequate due to the fact that E. coli and many pathogenic bacteria typically have a very short survival time in the environment. Even with no measurable E.coli, infectious bacteria with longer survival times can still be present. Further, large reservoirs of non infectious bacterial can remain undetected. Health effects of bacterial contamination are not solely a question of risk of infection from pathogenic bacteria. A high number of bacteria in general can cause other health effects such as hypersensitivity pneumonitis, allergy, and inflammation due to the influence of bacterial cell wall agents. A high level of any type bacteria left on surfaces has the potential to affect human health and that is true even though they are dead. The Mycometer® surface Bacteria method gives a measure of the total level of bacteria on a surface.

If you define “fair” as confirming or verifying that the contractor has accomplished the task of returning materials to a like-new condition, then the Mycometer® surface Bacteria is extremely fair. However, it can be argued that the Mycometer® surface Bacteria is a rigorous, unambiguous test that may be more difficult for some less than thorough contractors to pass than culture plate testing or visual inspections.

Under certain conditions, Yes. A dilution series of a known bacterial suspension under laboratory controlled conditions will give a very good correlation (see figure below). However, it is not the general rule. When measuring total bacteria in an environmental sample with a high diversity of bacteria, often as little as 1% of the bacteria present may be culturable. Many variables such as the percentage of culturable bacteria in the environment, the nutrient agar used, time and temperature of incubation, as well as other things will affect the outcome of the plate count. Whereas, Mycometer® surface Bacteria method is not subject to these variables and provides a very consistent result.