Reservoirs of Pathogens Causing Health Care-Associated Infections in the 21st Century: Is Renewed Attention to Inanimate Surfaces Warranted?

Dual-action hygienic coatings: Benefits of hydrophobicity and silver ion release for protection of environmental and clinical surfaces

“…There is mounting evidence that environmental and clinical surfaces that harbour bacteria, can become sources of healthcareassociated infections (HCAI) [1]. Bacteria such as staphylococci have been reported to survive on surfaces outside the human host, over a range of temperatures and conditions for time periods ranging from 3 months to 5 years [2].…”

On the long term antibacterial features of silver-doped diamondlike carbon coatings deposited via a hybrid plasma process

“…[4][5][6] However, far too little attention has been paid to the microbial contamination in the inanimate environment, despite mounting evidence linking contaminated environmental surfaces to HAIs. [7][8][9] Because of the ability of bacteria to survive in a range of environments, 10 forming adhered sessile communities protected in biofilms, 11,12 common surfaces and articles may act as reservoirs of pathogenic microorganisms and establish additional pathways of transmission to susceptible patients. 8,13,14 Therefore, the development of antibacterial surfaces for near-patient clinical areas, acting in conjunction with cleaning and disinfection procedures, emerges as a necessary measure to reduce the spread of HAIs.…”

Impact of pulsed xenon ultraviolet light on hospital-acquired infection rates in a community hospital

“…These findings are encouraging given the history of environmental implicated infections and exceptional environmental reservoirs associated with these organisms. 25 The difference in infection rates for the ICU compared with the non-ICU areas demonstrates the increased risk of infection in the ICU and the leverage that ICU-based interventions can have on the facility-wide rates. Furthermore, there seems to be a direct correlation between the focused use of PX-UV on all C difficile discharges facility-wide and a decrease in postincidence infection rates.…”