Background
This peer reviewed article entitled “Surface and air: What impact does UV-C at the room level have on airborne and surface bacteria?” Was published in the Canadian Journal of Infection Control on August 18, 2017.
Author, Linda D. Lee, DrPH, MS, MBA, Executive Vice President and Chief Science Officer, VidaShield
Short-wave ultraviolet light (UV-C) is known to have the ability to render bacteria inert. Scientists theorized that using UV-C in a continuous fashion at room level would not only lower the amount of bacteria circulating in the air, but also lessen the amount of bacteria found on surfaces in the same space.
Method
Field trials were set up at three hospitals (Texas, Nevada, and Massachusetts) where both the air and surfaces were tested for bacteria, VidaShield continuous UV-C products were installed at room level, and then the air and surfaces were tested again.
Results
In all cases, airborne bacteria was reduced between 79 and 91% over pre-installation values. Most surfaces also showed reductions in bacteria from 48 to 69%, although one incident did show an increase of 288%.
Conclusions
The data indicates that using active air UV-C technology like VidaShield at room level reduces the bioburden in the air and on surfaces, including in occupied spaces. Hospitals should consider implementing active UV-C technology to improve air quality.
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