Microbial contamination in home laundry operations in Japan.

The home-laundering situation in Japan is unique among many countries as leftover bath water is used for laundering the next day. However, such a unique custom may cause household microbial transmission. A bacteriological investigation of various articles was carried out to clarify the link between the microbial transmission and the home laundering operation. Staphylococcus spp. were isolated from every sample of children's underwear, bath towels, kitchen rags, washing machine and leftover bath water. Although pathogenic bacteria were not detected, some opportunistic pathogens were detected. Since many bacteria were isolated from bath water, home-laundering with used bath water may cause microbial contamination of the laundry. Biocontrol Science (Japan) 2003;8(1):9-18.