A scoping review of disinfection methods and microbial decontamination outcomes on mobile communication devices

Abstract

Mobile communication devices (MCDs) are ubiquitous in clinical and community settings and often overlooked as potential sources of microbial contamination and spread of infectious agents. This review compares the effectiveness of several cleaning and disinfection techniques for MCDs with a focus on the microbial decontamination outcomes from diverse environmental settings. A total of 40 original research articles published in the English language from 2010 to 2025 were included. A narrative synthesis and harmonising outcomes to a common metric (percent reduction in microbial burden) were performed where feasible, counting each study once per decontamination category due to data heterogeneity. Photodynamic disinfection and chemical (gas)-based techniques like peracetic acid fogging demonstrated the highest mean microbial removal efficiency (≥ 98%), while physical cleaning, natural organics, bleach-based agents, and UV-C light all revealed significant mean efficiency (≥ 90%). Even though they were widely used, alcohol-based wipes were less efficient (with a mean efficiency of approximately 83.5%), particularly against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. However, Candida species, SARS-CoV-2, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were the microorganisms that showed the highest vulnerability to the decontaminant types based on tested conditions, whereas S. aureus and spore-forming Bacillus species revealed a substantial resistance to alcohol-based wipes and some chemical disinfectants, respectively. The review highlights that there is no single decontaminant method that works for all types of microbes in MCDs. However, despite the high average effectiveness values of some decontaminant techniques, factors such as pathogen type, device surface, environmental settings, and user application practices may significantly influence the success of microbial removal efficiency.