Evaluation of a pulsed-xenon ultraviolet room disinfection device for impact on contamination levels of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

摘要

Background Healthcare-acquired infections with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are a significant cause of increased mortality, morbidity and additional health care costs in United States. Surface decontamination technologies that utilize pulsed xenon ultraviolet light (PPX-UV) may be effective at reducing microbial burden. The purpose of this study was to compare standard manual room-cleaning to PPX-UV disinfection technology for MRSA and bacterial heterotrophic plate counts (HPC) on high-touch surfaces in patient rooms. Methods Rooms vacated by patients that had a MRSA-positive polymerase chain reaction or culture during the current hospitalization and at least a 2-day stay were studied. 20 rooms were then treated according to one of two protocols: standard manual cleaning or PPX-UV. This study evaluated the reduction of MRSA and HPC taken from five high-touch surfaces in rooms vacated by MRSA-positive patients, as a function of cleaning by standard manual methods vs a PPX-UV area disinfection device. Results Colony counts in 20 rooms (10 per arm) prior to cleaning varied by cleaning protocol: for HPC, manual (mean?=?255, median?=?278, q1-q3 132–304) vs PPX-UV (mean?=?449, median?=?365, q1-q3 332–530), and for MRSA, manual (mean?=?127; median?=?28.5; q1-q3 8–143) vs PPX-UV (mean?=?108; median?=?123; q1-q3 14–183). PPX-UV was superior to manual cleaning for MRSA (adjusted incident rate ratio [IRR]?=?7; 95% CI Conclusion PPX-UV technology appears to be superior to manual cleaning alone for MRSA and HPC. Incorporating 15?minutes of PPX-UV exposure time to current hospital room cleaning practice can improve the overall cleanliness of patient rooms with respect to selected micro-organisms.