How UV disinfection affects C. diff: 3 study findings

Disinfecting rooms with pulsed xenon ultraviolet light was linked to a reduction in intensive care unit-acquired Clostridium difficile infections in a recent study published in the American Journal of Infection Control.

Researchers evaluated CDI rates, patient lengths of stay, room occupancy and number of days between a CDI case in a room and a hospital-acquired CDI case in the same patient room. They compared the rates for the first year after ultraviolet disinfection was implemented and compared the rates with the one-year period before UV disinfection was implemented.

All total, there were 525 CDI cases (including both hospital-acquired and community-acquired cases) throughout the study. Of those, 251 cases occurred during the UV disinfection period and 274 cases occurred during the pre-UV disinfection period.

Highlighted below are three findings from the study.

1. Hospital-acquired CDI incidence was 22 lower during the UV disinfect period compared with the pre-UV disinfection period.

2. The 22 percent reduction in hospital-acquired CDI was essentially caused by a highly significant 70 percent reduction of CDI in the adult ICUs and a 20 percent reduction in the larger population of adult non-ICUs.

3. The lower CDI incidence is particularly surprising considering there was an 18 percent increase in community-acquired CDI rates during the UV disinfection period.

According to the researchers, the findings suggest UV disinfection had an overall beneficial effect on the reduction of hospital-acquired CDI.

"These data also demonstrate the importance of monitoring community-acquired CDI and total CDI contact precautions days along with interventions that may affect hospital-acquired rates," concluded the study authors.

 

 

More articles on UV disinfection:
Xenex offers infection reduction guarantee with UV light robot
Combat UV light disinfection misconceptions with just one step
5 latest findings on UV light disinfection in hospitals

Copyright © 2025 Becker's Healthcare. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy. Cookie Policy. Linking and Reprinting Policy.


You can unsubscribe from these communications at any time. For more information, please review our Privacy Policy
.
 

Articles We Think You'll Like

 

Featured Whitepapers

Featured Webinars