Working to expand the tools for environmental hygiene
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that costs associated with healthcare associated infections (HAIs) start at $28 billion annually. There are over 1.7 million healthcare associated infections (HAIs) in U.S. hospitals every year, and in the last decade this figure has remained largely unchanged. While proper hand hygiene, improved environmental services protocols, and intervention-specific “bundles” remain crucial elements of today’s best infection prevention strategies, there is growing evidence that reducing bioburden on hospital surfaces may be a helpful next step.
PurThread™ Technologies Inc., a leader in antimicrobial textile technology, is researching the impact of replacing traditional hospital textile products with PurThread textiles to help reduce the bioburden on surfaces in the clinical environment. A recent article in the journal Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology (ICHE) cited encouraging preliminary results from a randomized, controlled clinical study that incorporated privacy curtains using PurThread technology. The EPA has not yet reviewed any potential public health claims for PurThread products or the antimicrobial additive.
Learn more about bioburden in the hospital environment and about the risk of HAIs by visiting the Clinical Background page of our Resources section.
PurThread products incorporate an EPA-registered antimicrobial additive into every fiber and yarn to protect the fabric from degradation.