Joint article on hydrogen peroxide efficacy published in letters in applied microbiology

Wickham Laboratories Ltd is pleased to announce the publication of a joint study with Bioquell on the efficacy of disinfection by hydrogen peroxide.

This joint study on “Evaluating different concentrations of hydrogen peroxide in an automated room disinfection system.” has recently been published in the leading scientific journal Letters in Applied Microbiology.¹ The research was conducted to facilitate the understanding of hospital infection control teams regarding the impact and risks of performing disinfection with only low concentrations of hydrogen peroxide.

This comparative study was made on the efficacy of various hydrogen peroxide solutions (5%, 10% and 35%) when applied using an automated room disinfection system within a large, sealed, environmentally controlled enclosure. Six-log biological indicators containing Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Geobacillus stearothermophilus spores were placed within this room and hydrogen peroxide vapour was distributed throughout via Bioquell’s BQ-50 generator.

Results demonstrated that 5% and 10% hydrogen peroxide solutions killed off G. stearothermophilus sphores at 70 and 40 minute cycles respectively but were ineffective against MRSA. 35% hydrogen peroxide however was effective against MRSA (30 minutes) and G. stearothermophilus (20 minutes).

Important to note was that the concentration of 5% hydrogen peroxide vapour exceeded the 15-minute Short Term Exposure Limit for hydrogen peroxide vapour and users of these systems should be careful to utilise monitoring procedures to ensure patient and staff safety.

The full article is available online via the Wiley Online Library or can be made available upon request.

¹ Murdoch, L.E., Bailey, L., Banham, E., Watson, F., Adams, N.M.T. and Chewins, J. (2016), Evaluating different concentrations of hydrogen peroxide in an automated room disinfection system. Lett Appl Microbiol. doi:10.1111/lam.12607