1918

infectiousDiseases

TECHnologicaladvancements

TBDSOURCES

There has not been one significant development in infection control since the late 19th century. The mid-to-late 1800’s saw the discovery and adoption of a number of infection control protocols still enforced today: hand-washing, using heat to sterilize surgical instruments, antiseptics, and surgical masks. As we moved through the 20th century to today, not only have traditional methods reached the point of diminishing returns, but so too have antibiotics. Technology must step in where medicine is failing to close the infection control loop.

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Hieronymus Fracastorius described three modes of disease spread: direct contact with infected persons, indirect contact with fomites, and airborne transmission.

1546

First mandatory vaccination law in the U.S. was enacted, giving the government the power to enforce mandatory vaccination or quarantine in the event of a disease (smallpox) outbreak that posed a threat to the public health.

1809

1883Sterile gowns and caps were introduced.

Anton Van Leeuwenhoek invents the microscope.

1674

Mortality rates dropped by 10- to 20-fold within 3 months after a strict policy of hand-washing with a chlorinated antiseptic solution was instituted.

1847

Incidence of smallpox increased in North America during the 1700s, inoculation

against the virus became more widely used.

1721

Spanish Flu: 500 million people had been infected and between 50 and 100 million had died, roughly 3 percent of the population.

Staphylococcus aureus (also known as "Staph infection") is discovered, one of the earlier bacteria in which

penicillin resistance was found.

1947

In the United States, evidence of emergence of antibiotic-resistant

bacterial strains due to wide use of antibiotics to promote weight gain in

livestock was determined by the FDA.

1977

The H5N1 virus, also known as "avian flu" is first reported in Hong Kong.

1997

2002

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) first detected in Britain.

1961

Carbolic Acid was used as an antiseptic in surgical procedures, significantly reducing mortality rates from infection by 30 percent within a decade.

1867

Heat sterilization of instruments was introduced, which proved superior to chemical sterilization.

1897Surgical mask was invented.

1891

1915The first school of hygiene and public health is created at Johns Hopkins University.

1944U.S. produced the first mass production of penicillin – 2.3 million doses.

1943Quarantine and isolation were emphasized because diseases such as smallpox and TB were seen in U.S. hospitals. * This is the last significant development in infection control.

1928Alexander Fleming was attributed with discovering the antibiotic properties of penicillin, which is derived from a fungus.

SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, began with

pneumonia-like symptoms in a handful of Chinese, and within weeks,

had spread to five continents.

2009The World Health Organization

declared H1N1, "swine flu," a global pandemic, the first such designation

in 41 years.

2004CDC reported an increasing number of Acinetobacter baumannii

bloodstream infections in patients at military medical facilities. Most of these showed multidrug resistance (MRAB).

2013The CDC reports a growing class of “nightmare” superbug, called

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, has been found only in nursing homes and hospitals; resistant to even the most

powerful antibiotics. The data shows about four percent of acute-care hospitals, and 18 percent of long-term acute care hospitals in

America, reported at least one case of dangerous CRE bacteria.

The Rising Cost to Health Care Facilities

DID YouKNOw?

Today’s TechnologyFighting Against HAIs

$30 Billion

380,000

in hospital costs annually due to hospital infections and increasing rapidly as more infections become drug-resistant.

Traditional infection control developments have reached the point of diminishing returns.

$34,179total cost of an outbreak of Influenza per facility.

$40 Billionamount of additional healthcare per CDC estimate in 2002.

estimated deaths among NH/SNF residents every year due to infections

4THLEADING

Cause of death in America are hospital-acquired infections.

99,000Americans died in 2011 fromhospital-acquired infections.

200,000Americans died in 2012; double in just one year.

$13.8 BillionCA-MRSA imposes an annual burden

of $1.4-13.8 billion on society.

$17.4 Billion40%

of Medicare patients are readmitted within a month,

costing annually.

Plasma FieldTECHNOLOGY

Applying an electromagnetic field to a gas creates a plasma field

that generates billions of particles - UV photons, electrons, ions and

neutral particles – and that is uniquely destructive to all

microorganisms.

e�ective eradication99.9999999999%

Hydrogen Peroxide& Vapor Generation

Supplemental room surface disinfection using Sanosil S010. The droplets fill the room and

are drawn into every nook, crevice and corner, reaching

surfaces that regular cleaning and disinfecting can’t.

air filters

Designed to maintain cleaning e�orts long after disinfectants and cleaning agents have evaporated.

Very few people, be they of what class they may, have any idea of the exquisite cleanliness required in a sick room.Florence Nightingale

There have been no significant medical advancements in almost 70 years.

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