Version 1
: Received: 3 December 2021 / Approved: 6 December 2021 / Online: 6 December 2021 (15:26:24 CET)
How to cite:
Kalb, L.; Bäßler, P.; Schneider-Brachert, W.; Eckl, D.B. Antimicrobial Photodynamic Coatings Reduce the Microbial Burden on Environmental Surfaces in Public Transportation - a Field Study in Buses. Preprints2021, 2021120085. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202112.0085.v1.
Kalb, L.; Bäßler, P.; Schneider-Brachert, W.; Eckl, D.B. Antimicrobial Photodynamic Coatings Reduce the Microbial Burden on Environmental Surfaces in Public Transportation - a Field Study in Buses. Preprints 2021, 2021120085. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202112.0085.v1.
Cite as:
Kalb, L.; Bäßler, P.; Schneider-Brachert, W.; Eckl, D.B. Antimicrobial Photodynamic Coatings Reduce the Microbial Burden on Environmental Surfaces in Public Transportation - a Field Study in Buses. Preprints2021, 2021120085. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202112.0085.v1.
Kalb, L.; Bäßler, P.; Schneider-Brachert, W.; Eckl, D.B. Antimicrobial Photodynamic Coatings Reduce the Microbial Burden on Environmental Surfaces in Public Transportation - a Field Study in Buses. Preprints 2021, 2021120085. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202112.0085.v1.
Abstract
Millions of people use public transportation daily worldwide and frequently touch surfaces, thereby producing a reservoir of microorganisms on surfaces increasing the risk of transmission. Constant occupation makes sufficient cleaning difficult to achieve. Thus, an autonomous, perma-nent antimicrobial coating (AMC) could keep down the microbial burden on such surfaces. A photodynamic AMC was applied to frequently touched surfaces in buses. The microbial burden (colony forming units, cfu) was determined weekly and compared to equivalent surfaces in buses without AMC (references). The microbial burden ranged from 0 – 209 cfu/cm² on references and from 0 – 54 cfu/cm² on AMC. The means were 13.4 ± 29.6 cfu/cm² on references and 4.5 ± 8.4 cfu/cm² on AMC (p<0.001). The difference of microbial burden on AMC and references was al-most constant throughout the study. Considering a hygiene benchmark of 5 cfu/cm², the data yield an absolute risk reduction of 22.6 % and a relative risk reduction of 50.7 %. In conclusion, photo-dynamic AMC kept down the microbial burden, reducing the risk of transmission of microor-ganisms. AMC permanently and autonomously contributes to hygienic conditions on surfaces in public transportation. Photodynamic AMC therefore are suitable for reducing the microbial load and closing hygiene gaps in public transportation.
Keywords
antimicrobial coating; photodynamic inactivation; public transportation; AMC
Subject
MATERIALS SCIENCE, Surfaces, Coatings & Films
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
