The doffing of personal protective equipment (PPE) after contamination with pathogens such as Ebola poses a risk to health care workers. Pulsed xenon ultraviolet (PX-UV) disinfection has been used to disinfect surfaces in hospital settings. This study examined the impact of PX-UV disinfection on an Ebola surrogate virus on glass carriers and PPE material to examine the potential benefits of using PX-UV to decontaminate PPE while worn, thereby reducing the pathogen load prior to doffing. Ultraviolet (UV) safety and coverage tests were also conducted. PX-UV exposure resulted in a significant reduction in viral load on glass carriers and PPE materials. Occupational Safety and Health Administration–defined UV exposure limits were not exceeded during PPE disinfection. Predoffing disinfection with PX-UV has potential as an additive measure to the doffing practice guidelines. The PX-UV disinfection should not be considered sterilization; all PPE should still be considered contaminated and doffed and disposed of according to established protocols.
Last. Trish M. Perl(Johns Hopkins University)H-Index: 89
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Infections among health care workers have played a major role in outbreaks of Ebola virus disease (Ebola) since the virus was discovered in 1976. Available data from past outbreaks show that the deaths of health care workers were the canary in the coal mine signaling that an outbreak of a viral hemorrhagic fever had begun. The current Ebola outbreak that is devastating West Africa is unfortunately no different. In addition to an unprecedented number of total infections and deaths (2473 and 1350,...
Background Multiple-drug-resistant organisms (MDROs) and Clostridium difficile (CD) are significant problems in health care. Evidence suggests that these organisms are transmitted to patients by the contaminated environment. Methods This is a retrospective study of the implementation of ultraviolet environmental disinfection (UVD) following discharge cleaning of contact precautions rooms and other high-risk areas at Westchester Medical Center, a 643-bed tertiary care academic medical center. Inc...
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 (...
#1Yue Ping Guo(PolyU: Hong Kong Polytechnic University)H-Index: 6
#2Yi Li(PolyU: Hong Kong Polytechnic University)H-Index: 62
Last. Peony L.H. Wong(PolyU: Hong Kong Polytechnic University)H-Index: 1
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Background This study aimed to examine the body contamination rates and environmental contamination levels during the removal of 3 types of personal protective clothing (PPC) by the individual accustomed removal method (IARM) and gown removal methods recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Methods Fifty participants performed IARM and CDC-recommended gown removal methods to remove 3 types of PPC (ie, cotton gown, water resistant gown, and plastic apron) in random ord...
#1Joanne Levin(Northampton Community College)H-Index: 2
#2Linda Riley(Northampton Community College)H-Index: 2
Last. Sehoon Ahn(Northampton Community College)H-Index: 1
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There is evidence that contamination of patient rooms from previous occupants is associated with hospital-associated Clostridium difficile infection (HA-CDI). During January 2011, the use of 2 portable pulsed xenon ultraviolet light devices (PPX-UV) to disinfect patient rooms was added to routine hospital discharge cleaning in a community hospital. In 2010, the HA-CDI rate was 9.46 per 10,000 patient-days; in 2011, the HA-CDI rates was 4.45 per 10,000 patient-days (53% reduction, P = .01). The n...
Standard approaches to meticillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) prevention have included hand hygiene and active surveillance. These approaches have shown mixed results. The addition of pu...
#1Elizabeth L Beam(UNMC: University of Nebraska Medical Center)H-Index: 9
#2Shawn G. Gibbs(UNMC: University of Nebraska Medical Center)H-Index: 22
Last. Philip W. Smith(UNMC: University of Nebraska Medical Center)H-Index: 26
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Background Given the potential for the transfer of infectious diseases among patients in isolation, health care workers (HCWs), and other patients in the hospital environment, the proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE) is paramount. The literature is limited regarding studies of HCWs’ use of PPE in patient care tasks. Methods A pilot study was conducted to examine the feasibility of using a simulated health care environment to assess HCWs’ technique when implementing standard airborne...
Last. Mark D. Sobsey(UNC: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)H-Index: 84
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We evaluated a personal protective equipment removal protocol designed to minimize wearer contamination with pathogens. Following this protocol often resulted in virus transfer to hands and clothing. An altered protocol or other measures are needed to prevent healthcare worker contamination.
UV radiation from the sun is the primary germicide in the environment. The goal of this study was to estimate inactivation of viruses by solar exposure. We reviewed published reports on 254-nm UV inactivation and tabulated the sensitivities of a wide variety of viruses, including those with double-stranded DNA, single-stranded DNA, double-stranded RNA, or single-stranded RNA genomes. We calculated D37 values (fluence producing on average one lethal hit per virion and reducing viable virus to 37%...
#7Rakesh Kumar(National Environmental Engineering Research Institute)H-Index: 8
Amid COVID-19, there have been rampant increase in the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits by frontline health and sanitation communities, to reduce the likelihoods of infections. The used PPE kits, potentially being infectious, pose a threat to human health, terrestrial, and marine ecosystems, if not scientifically handled and disposed. However, with stressed resources on treatment facilities and lack of training to the health and sanitation workers, it becomes vital to vet differen...
#1Calin Ciugudeanu(Technical University of Cluj-Napoca)H-Index: 2
#2Dorin Beu(Technical University of Cluj-Napoca)H-Index: 3
Last. Mircea Buzdugan(Technical University of Cluj-Napoca)H-Index: 3
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Lighting Engineering Laboratory (LEL) of the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca is the main lighting independent consultant around Transylvania (the north-west region of Romania). LEL has many ongoing technical research or consultancy lighting contracts concluded with o lot of private companies, city councils and national regional authorities. Different lighting retrofit LED systems were tested so far. COVID-19 pandemic started in 2020 generated a lot of research regarding the fight against the...
Inanimate objects or surfaces contaminated with infectious agents, referred to as fomites, play an important role in the spread of viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. The long persistence of viruses (hours to days) on surfaces calls for an urgent need for effective surface disinfection strategies to intercept virus transmission and the spread of diseases. Elucidating the physicochemical processes and surface science underlying the adsorption and transf...
COVID-19 has infected millions of patients and impacted healthcare workers worldwide. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is a key component of protecting frontline clinicians against infection. The benefits of PPE far outweigh the risks, nonetheless, many clinicians are exhibiting skin injury caused by PPE worn incorrectly. These skin injuries, ranging from lesions to open wounds are concerning because they increase the susceptibility of viral infection and transmission to other individuals. Ea...
The emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 infection and its potential transmission through touching surfaces in clinical environments have impelled the use of conventional and novel methods of disinfection to prevent its spreading. Among the latter, pulsed light may be an effective, non-chemical decontamination alternative. Pulsed light technology inactivates microorganisms and viruses by using high intensity polychromatic light pulses, which degrades nucleic acids and proteins. This review describes this...
#1Neil J. Rowan(Athlone Institute of Technology)H-Index: 33
#2John G. Laffey(National University of Ireland, Galway)H-Index: 74
Abstract Currently, there is no effective vaccine for tackling the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 with the occurrence of repeat waves of infection frequently stretching hospital resources beyond capacity. Disease countermeasures rely upon preventing person-to-person transmission of SARS-CoV2 so as to protect front-line healthcare workers (HCWs). COVID-19 brings enormous challenges in terms of sustaining the supply chain for single-use-plastic personal and protective equipment (PP...
Background null Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by SARS-COV2, a highly transmissible and pathogenic viral infection, and was identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. Three months later, it became a severe pandemic. null Objective null To identify scientific evidence on the use of face shields by health professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic period. null Method null An integrative literature review of articles obtained from PubMed, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Li...
ABSTRACT We conducted a systematic review of hygiene intervention effectiveness against SARS-CoV-2, including developing inclusion criteria, conducting the search, selecting articles for inclusion, and summarizing included articles. We reviewed 104,735 articles, and 109 articles meeting inclusion criteria were identified, with 33 additional articles identified from reference chaining. Herein, we describe results from 58 mask disinfection and reuse studies, where the majority of data were collect...
The presence of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage and water resources has been used as an indication for the possible occurrence of the virus among communities and for its potential of transmission among humans through the surrounding environment or water resources. In order to reduce the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, contaminated surfaces should be disinfected frequently by using an effective disinfectant. The present review discusses a bibliometric analysis of the global SARS-CoV-2 research and focuses mainl...
The COVID-19 pandemic is posing a huge global health threat. To deal with this problem, in addition to research and work in the medical field, the main health measures being taken in the workplace and at home involve the establishment of safety protocols, which include distance measures, hygiene and the use of personal protective equipment, such as masks, etc. The WHO still does not recommend the use of masks for the general population. However, their successful use in China, South Korea and the...
