Aqualution Systems Ltd, Duns, UK.
J Hosp Infect. 2012 Feb;80(2):122-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jhin.2011.10.015. Epub 2011 Dec 21.
Infection control in hospitals and care homes remains a key issue. They are regularly inspected regarding standards of hygiene, but visual assessment does not necessarily correlate with microbial cleanliness. Pathogens can persist in the inanimate environment for extended periods of time.
This prospective study compared the effectiveness of a novel sanitizer containing electrolysed water, in which the active ingredient is stabilized hypochlorous acid (Aqualution™), with the effectiveness of the quaternary ammonium disinfectant in current use for microbial removal from hand-touch surfaces in a care home. The study had a two-period crossover design.
Five surfaces were cleaned daily over a four-week period, with screening swabs taken before and after cleaning. Swabs were cultured in order to compare levels of surface microbial contamination [colony-forming units (cfu)/cm(2)] before and after cleaning with each product.
Cleaning with electrolysed water reduced the mean surface bacterial load from 2.6 [interquartile range (IQR) 0.30-30.40] cfu/cm(2) to 0.10 (IQR 0.10-1.40) cfu/cm(2) [mean log(10) reduction factor 1.042, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.79-1.30]. Cleaning with the in-use quaternary ammonium disinfectant increased the bacterial load from 0.90 (IQR 0.10-8.50) cfu/cm(2) to 93.30 (IQR 9.85-363.65) cfu/cm(2) (mean log(10) reduction -1.499, 95% CI -1.87 to -1.12) (P < 0.0001). Using two proposed benchmark standards for surface microbial levels in hospitals, electrolysed water resulted in a higher 'pass rate' than the in-use quaternary ammonium disinfectant (80-86% vs 15-21%, P < 0.0001).
Electrolysed water exerts a more effective bacterial kill than the in-use quaternary ammonium disinfectant, which suggests that it may be useful as a surface sanitizer in environments such as care homes.
医院和养老院的感染控制仍然是一个关键问题。它们经常根据卫生标准进行检查，但目视评估不一定与微生物清洁度相关。病原体可以在无生命的环境中长时间存活。
本前瞻性研究比较了一种新型含电解水消毒剂的效果，其中有效成分是稳定的次氯酸（Aqualution™），与目前用于养老院手触表面微生物去除的季铵盐消毒剂的效果。该研究采用双周期交叉设计。
在四周的时间内，每天清洁五处表面，在清洁前后采集筛查拭子。培养拭子以比较使用每种产品清洁前后表面微生物污染水平[菌落形成单位（cfu）/cm(2)]。
使用电解水清洁可将平均表面细菌负荷从 2.6（四分位间距 [IQR] 0.30-30.40）cfu/cm(2)降低至 0.10（IQR 0.10-1.40）cfu/cm(2) [平均对数（10）减少因子 1.042，95%置信区间（CI）0.79-1.30]。使用市售季铵盐消毒剂清洁会增加细菌负荷，从 0.90（IQR 0.10-8.50）cfu/cm(2)增加至 93.30（IQR 9.85-363.65）cfu/cm(2)（平均对数（10）减少-1.499，95%CI-1.87 至-1.12）（P<0.0001）。使用两种建议的医院表面微生物水平基准标准，电解水的“合格率”高于市售季铵盐消毒剂（80-86%比 15-21%，P<0.0001）。
电解水比市售季铵盐消毒剂更有效地杀灭细菌，这表明它可能在养老院等环境中作为表面消毒剂有用。
