A recent study funded by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Epicenters Program reinforces previous studies showing that an automated UV-C-emitting device is effective against Clostridium difficile (C. diff.), vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) and Acinetobacter spp.
These pathogens, along with others such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), can persist on environmental surfaces for days or weeks, and C. diff. spores can exist as long as five months on surfaces in hospital environments. Studies have shown that 50% or more of hospital surfaces go untouched during terminal room disinfection, leading to the transmission of these hardy pathogens from one patient to another.
The new research, published in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology (Deverick H. Anderson, M.D., MPH et al., 2013), was based on the use of the TRU-D SmartUVC, a portable UV disinfection manufactured by Lumalier, Memphis, Tenn.
