Sunderland City Hospital Announces Significant C. Difficile Reduction Rates After Eight Month Pilot Programme Study, UK

Main Category: MRSA / Drug Resistance
Also Included In: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses;  Public Health
Article Date: 24 Sep 2008 - 2:00 PDT

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Sunderland City Hospital has reported preliminary data on the Hospital's significant reduction in C. Difficile infection rates. Since early 2008, Sunderland Hospital has deployed new technology as part of their ongoing commitment to patient care, ensuring patient safety, targeting the breathable air where C. Diff resides.

The Air Disinfection device uses self-generating hydroxyl radicals to clean the air on the wards of 99.999 % of pathogens. Hydroxyl radicals occur naturally in the open air, but cannot normally penetrate enclosed spaces. For decades 'fresh air' from open windows made patients feel better and was perceived as an 'old wives tale', but researchers at Porton Down in the 1960's discovered the naturally self-cleaning properties of the open air. Years later, this unique self-disinfection property of the outside air was attributed to the presence of hydroxyl radicals which now forms the basis of the technology behind the new Air Disinfection devices.

Sunderland Hospital Infection Results

As part of the infection control pilot programme, three wards, each containing 27 beds, were subjected to identical deep cleaning measures. Two of the wards were supplied with Air Disinfection devices and the patients given bio-yoghurt. These two wards revealed 76.7% and 90.9% reduction in the number of C. Diff isolates over the last year compared to only 44.8% reduction in the third ward.

Les Boobis, the Director of Infection and Prevention Control at Sunderland Hospital, says "We are very pleased with the initial results we have seen in the patient wards where the Air Disinfection technology has been deployed. C. Diff is a highly contagious and potentially life-threatening condition and through improving the air quality, and our continued vigilance with cleanliness, we appear to be achieving real reductions in our infection rates."

C. Diff infection can cause abdominal pain, fever and most commonly severe diarrhoea which can lead to dehydration and can potentially be fatal. Particularly associated with healthcare environments, C. Diff can extend a patient's stay in some cases for more than a week and can be a challenge to accurately diagnose in the lab. This gastro-intestinal infection is extremely contagious and creates an unpleasant smell for both patients and nurses.

The Technology

Inov8 Science's Air Disinfection (AD) device kills 99.999% of airborne pathogens such as MRSA and C. Diff in less than one hour.

The technology is based on extensive government-funded research carried out at the former Government Biological & Chemical Research Centre at Porton Down during the Cold War. Under threat of a potential airborne biological attack at night, the government needed to implement contingency plans as scientists believed air could only clean itself during the day on account of ultraviolet light. They hung spider silk coated with bacteria on a frame and found that these bacteria would in fact be killed faster at night than during the day and therefore could not be attributed to UV light. This natural germ-killing property in the air became known as the Open Air Factor (OAF), and was later connected to the presence of hydroxyl radicals in the outdoor atmosphere.

About Inov8 Science

Inov8 Science Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of the AIM listed company, Mid-States PLC. Together with sister company Inov8 Technologies Limited, Inov8 Science operates from premises in Buckingham, UK, that also houses a sophisticated manufacturing capability supporting both enterprises.

Inov8 Science works with a number of world-renowned microbiologists and scientists who offer decades of experience between them in the areas of microbiology and complex atmospheric chemistry.

Inov8 Science