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High-throughput Identification of Bacteria Repellent Polymers for Medical Devices
Published on: November 5, 2016
Self-disinfecting surfaces: review of current methodologies and future prospects
David J Weber1, William A Rutala
1Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA. dweber@unch.unc.edu
Abstract:
Methods to improve disinfection of environmental surfaces in hospital rooms include improving cleaning/disinfection by environmental service workers through education and feedback on cleaning effectiveness (eg, use of fluorescent dyes), "no-touch" methods (eg, UV-C light), and self-disinfecting surfaces. Self-disinfecting surfaces can be created by impregnating or coating surfaces with heavy metals (eg, silver or copper), germicides (eg, triclosan), or miscellaneous methods (eg, light-activated antimicrobials). These methods are under active investigation but to date have not been assessed for their ability to reduce health care-associated infections.
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