Originally Published MPMN November
2004
INDUSTRY NEWS
Chlorine-Coated
Bed Linens Ward Off Microbes
Analee
Zelaya
Each year patients in U.S. hospitals will acquire two million infections, according
to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And as that number continues
growing, so do the costs to patients and healthcare facilities: Hospital infections
kill 60,000 to 80,000 people a year, and more than $5 billion is added to U.S.
healthcare costs as a direct result of nosocomial infections.
To curb the infectious pathogens, Medline Industries Inc. (Mundelein,
IL; www.medline.com), a
provider of textiles to the U.S. healthcare industry, has made available bed
linens treated with HaloShield, a durable chlorine-based coating developed by
Vanson HaloSource (Redmond, WA; www.vanson.com).
“Sheets using this new technology may prove to be an important adjunct
to a healthcare facility’s infection control practices,” says Dorothy
Thompson, infection control coordinator for Mt. Sinai Hospital in Chicago.
HaloShield binds EPA-registered chlorine-based sanitizers to sheets and pillowcases,
a technique that fosters an effective antimicrobial barrier for the lifetime
of the bed linens. “It is well documented that soiled linens harbor microorganisms
that can be transmitted to others,” says Gang Sun, PhD, a professor of
textiles and clothing at the University of California, Davis, and a HaloShield
developer. “In light of the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, the
use of HaloShield can be a major development in the battle against microbes
that can spread infection.”
Copyright ©2004 Medical Product Manufacturing News
