Results from a study presented at the Society for Healthcare and Epidemiology of America annual conference indicate Dry Hydrogen Peroxide (DHP) from Synexis effectively reduces Candida auris (C. auris) contamination on surfaces.
C. auris, a type of fungus, can cause severe infections in hospitalized patients and nursing home residents. C. auris cases continue to rise in the U.S., up 318% since 2018. Antimicrobial resistance to C. auris is also on the rise, causing significant challenges for healthcare providers. Data reports 90% of C. auris isolates are resistant to at least one antifungal, while 30% are resistant to at least two antifungals creating challenges for infection control.
The study was designed to assess the presence of C. auris environmental contamination in multiple clinical units, and to evaluate the efficacy of DHP, a continuous supplemental technology and its exposure on C. auris contamination. The research was conducted in a large tertiary care center where multiple patients were either infected or colonized with C. auris. The Synexis System was installed in the ventilation system of an adult burn intensive care and a children’s cardiac intensive care units where patients with C. auris were admitted.
Prior to the installation of DHP, 70% of surface sampled in active C. auris patient rooms tested positive for the presence of C. auris. The same surfaces were sampled during the month after installation of DHP, and the proportion of samples testing positive for C. auris decreased to 16.7%. This 53.3% absolute reduction was determined to be statistically significant. Conversely, patient rooms without DHP installed did not see a statistically significant reduction in the proportion of surfaces testing positive for C. auris, providing further evidence of DHP impact.
“Manual cleaning as a stand-alone protocol struggles to keep up with this superbug. Our Synexis System continuously works behind the scenes within occupied spaces to reduce fungus, bacteria, and viruses. The addition of our technology provided an extra layer of patient safety and obtained significant reductions on surfaces during deployment. The promising results are encouraging as C. auris outbreaks continue to threaten healthcare environments,” said Dennis Doyle, CEO at Synexis. “We’re excited to provide our microbial reduction system for healthcare facilities to be proactive in managing the transmission of C. auris.”
