KUALA LUMPUR, August 28 — Researchers at the University of Birmingham have come up with an antimicrobial coating which can be applied on equipment and devices commonly used in hospitals. These include metal medical equipment, toilet and door handles, and hospital bed railings.
The coating has been found to be able to rapidly eliminate bacteria for several common infections including S. aureus and E. coli.
Door handles, an operating theatre and a communal toilet on a ship were used as test and control surfaces. The treated and untreated surfaces were subjected to the usual daily cleaning routines for 11 months.
The antimicrobial coating was found to be effective against five bacteria responsible for hospital-acquired infections, namely Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterococcus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli.
The coating killed bacteria within 45 minutes.
In comparison, commercially available options do not have a strong effect on bacteria until up to 24 hours.
This could be a major breakthrough in fighting hospital-acquired infections.
The coating has been patented by University of Birmingham Enterprise, and is to be commercialised under the name, NitroPep.
