TORONTO, May 27, 2014 /CNW/ - Every day, deadly pathogens are spread through touch and transferred easily from one surface to the next. MERS virus can live on high touch surfaces for days, while the widespread superbug's C. difficile and MRSA can live on touch surfaces for months. Canada's status quo approach to prevention is ineffective. In fact, Canada has the highest HAI rate of eleven developed countries surveyed by the World Health Organization.
Copper and many copper alloys kill bacteria and are in fact registered as antimicrobial agents with the EPA. Door handles, chair arms, toilet seats, IV poles, faucets, can all be made into naturally antimicrobial agents. The problem with replacing steel or aluminum alloy surfaces with copper ones is that copper is expensive, it tarnishes, it isn't durable and it simply does not stand up to everyday use.
AEREUS Technologies is a Canadian start-up that has invented a way to preserve all of the powerful antimicrobial properties of copper without any of its weaknesses. Aereus Shield® is a proprietary, durable copper alloy coating which can be applied to most surfaces and substrates using the company's patented thermal spray application process. The composition of Aereus Shield® is such that the product is natural, non-toxic, recyclable and non-tarnishing.
The effectiveness of Aereus Shield® as an antimicrobial agent has been proven in the lab and in real patient environments. For example, to verify the effectiveness of Aereus Shield® a study was undertaken at the Toronto General Hospital. The real world result was significant and demonstrated that Aereus Shield® protected chair arms had 68% less bacteria compared to the standard plastic arm control group, as measured by colony counts using swab tests.
"Our study at Toronto General Hospital showed that copper alloy coatings have persistent antimicrobial activity. These coatings could be highly valuable in healthcare settings." - Dr. McGeer, Infectious Disease Consultant and Microbiologist, Mount Sinai Hospital.
This incredible breakthrough is in the early stages of being applied in real hospital settings. Aereus Shield® has recently signed a licensing agreement with Techlem Medical, a hospital equipment manufacturer, to produce Aereus Shield® coated stretchers and IV stands.
Dr. Karim Keshavjee, Aereus Technologies' Medical Director, will be presenting at Infection Prevention and Control Canada's 2014 National Convention in Halifax on May 26th. CEO Tom Portman will also be attending the conference and demonstrating the effectiveness of Aereus Shield® at the booths of Techlem and Class 1 Inc. throughout the three day conference being held at the Halifax World Trade Centre. An ATP test will be used to demonstrate how quickly Aereus Shield® kills microbes. It is a remarkably powerful demonstration.
Aereus Technologies is a member of the Coalition for Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction (CHAIR).
Video with caption: "VIDEO: We are losing the battle in the fight against Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI's), but a Canadian breakthrough could change the game.". Video available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/playback.cgi?file=20140527_C7003_VIDEO_EN_40772.mp4&posterurl=http://photos.newswire.ca/images/20140527_C7003_PHOTO_EN_40772.jpg&clientName=Aereus%20Technologies%20Inc%2E&caption=VIDEO%3A%20We%20are%20losing%20the%20battle%20in%20the%20fight%20against%20Healthcare%2DAssociated%20Infections%20%28HAI%27s%29%2C%20but%20a%20Canadian%20breakthrough%20could%20change%20the%20game%2E&title=AEREUS%20TECHNOLOGIES%20INC%2E%20%2D%20We%20are%20losing%20the%20battle%20in%20the%20fight%20against%20Healthcare%2DAssociated%20Infections%20%28HAI%27s%29%2C%20but%20a%20Canadian%20breakthrough%20could%20change%20the%20game%2E&headline=We%20are%20losing%20the%20battle%20in%20the%20fight%20against%20Healthcare%2DAssociated%20Infections%20%28HAI%27s%29%2C%20but%20a%20Canadian%20breakthrough%20could%20change%20the%20game%2E
Image with caption: "We are losing the battle in the fight against Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI's), but a Canadian breakthrough could change the game. (CNW Group/Aereus Technologies Inc.)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20140527_C7003_PHOTO_EN_40770.jpg
Image with caption: "The picture on the left shows healthy E. coli bacteria living on stainless steel. The picture on the right shows E. coli bacteria at various stages of destruction on an Aereus Shield surface. Dept. of Cell and System Biology-University of Toronto (CNW Group/Aereus Technologies Inc.)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20140527_C7003_PHOTO_EN_40771.jpg
PDF available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2014/05/27/20140527_C7003_DOC_EN_40773.pdf
SOURCE: Aereus Technologies Inc.
Media Contact: Jenn Green
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