A 3D-printed, touch-activated, sanitizer dispensing device for reducing healthcare-acquired infections

Aim: We present a touch-activated, sanitizer dispensing (TSD) device, intended to be mounted on high-touch surfaces, that aims to reduce nosocomial infections It disinfects the person's hand touching its surface while being self-sterilizing Materials & methods: The TSD device consists of an array of 3D-printed, passive, miniaturized, mechanical valves that dispense a small amount of liquid sanitizer when touched Its mechanical performance and disinfecting efficiency were quantified using simulations and experimental tests Results & conclusion: The TSD device has a disinfecting efficiency comparable to the standard hand sanitizing approach, reducing the microbiological load by approximately 30-times It can be easily mounted on high-touch surfaces in a healthcare setting and it is expected to greatly reduce the spread of nosocomial infections

[1]  Clark Carboneau,et al.  A Lean Six Sigma Team Increases Hand Hygiene Compliance and Reduces Hospital‐Acquired MRSA Infections by 51% , 2010, Journal for healthcare quality : official publication of the National Association for Healthcare Quality.

[2]  Kalaivani Annadurai,et al.  Prevention of healthcare-associated infections: protecting patients, saving lives - , 2014 .

[3]  Zhifeng Ren,et al.  In honor of Professor Mildred Dresselhaus , 2017 .

[4]  Scott A. Reynolds,et al.  Hand Sanitizer Alert , 2006, Emerging infectious diseases.

[5]  F. Drangsholt,et al.  Comparison of UV C Light and Chemicals for Disinfection of Surfaces in Hospital Isolation Units , 2006, Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology.

[6]  Didier Pittet,et al.  Limited efficacy of alcohol-based hand gels , 2002, The Lancet.

[7]  B. Allegranzi,et al.  Role of hand hygiene in healthcare-associated infection prevention. , 2009, The Journal of hospital infection.

[8]  Stanislav N. Gorb,et al.  Contact Mechanics and Friction on Dry and Wet Human Skin , 2013, Tribology Letters.

[9]  Adam Huang,et al.  Fatigue analysis of FDM materials , 2013 .

[10]  G. Kampf,et al.  Less and less–influence of volume on hand coverage and bactericidal efficacy in hand disinfection , 2013, BMC Infectious Diseases.

[11]  Judy McKimm,et al.  Health care-associated infections – an overview , 2018, Infection and drug resistance.

[12]  Nicholas Drey,et al.  Types of interventions used to improve hand hygiene compliance and prevent healthcare associated infection , 2013 .

[13]  Hilary Humphreys,et al.  Self-disinfecting and microbiocide-impregnated surfaces and fabrics: what potential in interrupting the spread of healthcare-associated infection? , 2014, Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

[14]  Roman Putanowicz,et al.  3D printing of buildings and building components as the future of sustainable construction , 2016 .

[15]  Erich J. Schwarz,et al.  User Entrepreneur Business Models in 3D Printing , 2017 .

[16]  P. Mathur,et al.  Hand hygiene: Back to the basics of infection control , 2011, The Indian journal of medical research.

[17]  William A Rutala,et al.  Self-disinfecting surfaces: review of current methodologies and future prospects. , 2013, American journal of infection control.

[18]  Serge Guillas,et al.  The important role of sink location in handwashing compliance and microbial sink contamination. , 2014, American journal of infection control.

[19]  Rohaizan Ramlan,et al.  An Overview on 3D Printing Technology: Technological, Materials, and Applications , 2019, Procedia Manufacturing.

[20]  Stephen P. Luby,et al.  Microbiological evaluation of the efficacy of soapy water to clean hands: a randomized, non-inferiority field trial. , 2014, The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene.

[21]  Phil Mestecky,et al.  What is materials chemistry , 1998 .

[22]  Malancha Gupta,et al.  Surface functionalization of 3D-printed plastics via initiated chemical vapor deposition , 2017, Beilstein journal of nanotechnology.

[23]  R. Qualls,et al.  UV inactivation of pathogenic and indicator microorganisms , 1985, Applied and environmental microbiology.

[24]  A. Steele,et al.  Photocatalytic disinfection using titanium dioxide: spectrum and mechanism of antimicrobial activity , 2011, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[25]  Shravanthi T. Reddy,et al.  Surface micropattern reduces colonization and medical device‐associated infections , 2017, Journal of medical microbiology.

[26]  Tao Han,et al.  3D Printed Sensors for Biomedical Applications: A Review , 2019, Sensors.

[27]  Joel M Weaver,et al.  The increasing use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers. , 2005, Anesthesia progress.

[28]  Andreas Voss,et al.  Routine surface disinfection in health care facilities: should we do it? , 2002, American journal of infection control.

[29]  Valerie Curtis,et al.  Hygiene and health: systematic review of handwashing practices worldwide and update of health effects. , 2014, Tropical medicine & international health : TM & IH.

[30]  Ann Cozad,et al.  Disinfection and the prevention of infectious disease. , 2003, American journal of infection control.

[31]  Deborah Braccia,et al.  Systematic review of economic analyses of health care-associated infections. , 2005, American journal of infection control.

[32]  John M Boyce,et al.  Hand hygiene compliance monitoring: current perspectives from the USA. , 2008, The Journal of hospital infection.

[33]  S. Cairncross,et al.  Effect of washing hands with soap on diarrhoea risk in the community: a systematic review. , 2003, The Lancet. Infectious diseases.

[34]  W A Rutala,et al.  Surface disinfection: should we do it? , 2001, The Journal of hospital infection.

[35]  R. Wenzel,et al.  Handwashing compliance by health care workers: The impact of introducing an accessible, alcohol-based hand antiseptic. , 2000, Archives of internal medicine.

[36]  S. Dancer,et al.  Controlling Hospital-Acquired Infection: Focus on the Role of the Environment and New Technologies for Decontamination , 2014, Clinical Microbiology Reviews.

[37]  Adam W Feinberg,et al.  Engineered antifouling microtopographies – effect of feature size, geometry, and roughness on settlement of zoospores of the green alga Ulva , 2007, Biofouling.

[38]  Shravanthi T. Reddy,et al.  Micropatterned surfaces for reducing the risk of catheter-associated urinary tract infection: an in vitro study on the effect of sharklet micropatterned surfaces to inhibit bacterial colonization and migration of uropathogenic Escherichia coli. , 2011, Journal of endourology.

[39]  B. Andersen,et al.  Handwashing and disinfection of heavily contaminated hands--effective or ineffective? , 1992, The Journal of hospital infection.

[40]  Pinar Göker,et al.  Determination of hand and palm surface areas as a percentage of body surface area in Turkish young adults , 2017 .

[41]  V. Curtis,et al.  The Effect of Handwashing with Water or Soap on Bacterial Contamination of Hands , 2011, International journal of environmental research and public health.

[42]  Laila Cure,et al.  Effect of hand sanitizer location on hand hygiene compliance. , 2015, American journal of infection control.

[43]  Jennifer Davis,et al.  Access to waterless hand sanitizer improves student hand hygiene behavior in primary schools in Nairobi, Kenya. , 2013, The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene.

[44]  J. Haas,et al.  Measurement of compliance with hand hygiene. , 2007, The Journal of hospital infection.

[45]  Jeong-Wha Choi,et al.  Determination of body surface area and formulas to estimate body surface area using the alginate method. , 2008, Journal of physiological anthropology.

[46]  Murat Guvendiren,et al.  Current and emerging applications of 3D printing in medicine , 2017, Biofabrication.

[47]  Wai Yee Yeong,et al.  3D printed bio-models for medical applications , 2017 .

[48]  Reza Jafari,et al.  Recent progress and challenges with 3D printing of patterned hydrophobic and superhydrophobic surfaces , 2019, The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology.

[49]  Charles P Gerba,et al.  Long-term efficacy of a self-disinfecting coating in an intensive care unit. , 2014, American journal of infection control.

[50]  P. Stone,et al.  Economic burden of healthcare-associated infections: an American perspective , 2009, Expert review of pharmacoeconomics & outcomes research.

[51]  D. Cardo,et al.  Estimating Health Care-Associated Infections and Deaths in U.S. Hospitals, 2002 , 2007, Public health reports.

[52]  A. Kramer,et al.  How long do nosocomial pathogens persist on inanimate surfaces? A systematic review , 2006, BMC infectious diseases.

[53]  Andreas F Widmer,et al.  Are alcohol gels better than liquid hand rubs? , 2007, Critical care.

[54]  Benjamin M Wu,et al.  Recent advances in 3D printing of biomaterials , 2015, Journal of Biological Engineering.

[55]  Jaffar A Al-Tawfiq,et al.  Promoting and sustaining a hospital-wide, multifaceted hand hygiene program resulted in significant reduction in health care-associated infections. , 2013, American journal of infection control.

[56]  E J LOWBURY,et al.  Disinfection of Hands: Removal of Transient Organisms , 1964, British medical journal.

[57]  A. Kashani,et al.  Additive manufacturing (3D printing): A review of materials, methods, applications and challenges , 2018, Composites Part B: Engineering.

[58]  João Paulo Teixeira,et al.  Self-disinfecting surfaces and infection control , 2019, Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces.

[59]  H. Morton,et al.  THE RELATIONSHIP OF CONCENTRATION AND GERMICIDAL EFFICIENCY OF ETHYL ALCOHOL , 1950, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.

[60]  S. Dancer,et al.  How do we assess hospital cleaning? A proposal for microbiological standards for surface hygiene in hospitals , 2003, Journal of Hospital Infection.

[61]  Shravanthi T. Reddy,et al.  Surface micropattern limits bacterial contamination , 2014, Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control.