Highlights
- •A disinfection procedure using an autonomous UVC robot was evaluated.
- •Each robotic disinfection procedure lasted less than 10 minutes.
- •The mean UVC dose across 12 sample locations was found to be 13.01±4.36 mJ/cm2.
- •The robotic procedure led to greater bioburden reduction than manual disinfection.
- •Findings indicate that automated disinfection procedures could cut turnaround times.
Abstract
Background
Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) technologies have emerged as a promising
adjunct to manual cleaning, however, their potential to shorten cleaning times remains
unexplored.
Methods
A <10-minute disinfection procedure was developed using a robotic UVGI platform. The
efficacy and time to perform the UVGI procedure in a CT scan treatment room was compared
with current protocols involving manual disinfection using biocides. For each intervention,
environmental samples were taken at 12 locations in the room before and after disinfection
on seven distinct occasions.
Results
The mean UVC dose at each sample location was found to be 13.01 ± 4.36 mJ/cm2, which exceeded published UVC thresholds for achieving log reductions of many common
pathogens. Significant reductions in microbial burden were measured after both UVGI
(P) and manual cleaning (P) conditions, with the UVGI procedure revealing the largest effect size (r = 0.603).
Discussion
These results support the hypothesis that automated deployments of UVGI technology
can lead to germicidal performance that is comparable with, and potentially better
than, current manual cleaning practices.
Conclusions
Our findings provide early evidence that the incorporation of automated UVGI procedures
into cleaning workflow could reduce turnaround times in radiology, and potentially
other hospital settings.
Key Words
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: January 19, 2022
Footnotes
Conflicts of interest: Three of the authors (Conor McGinn, Niamh Donnelly, Michael Cullinan) declare a conflict of interest due to their involvement as shareholders of Akara Robotics, a company involved in the development of UVGI technology.
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc.
