Most people don't go to the hospital to get sicker. But with financial crises strapping hospital budgets the world over, patient safety suffers when the work load of doctors and nurses gets stretched thin.
A 2010 study showed that 48,000 Americans die each year due to hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), though authors of the study say that figure is underestimated. However, to put that in perspective, that's nearly three times the number of Americans who die each year from AIDS.
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In the European Union, it's estimated that 10 percent of patients pick up HAIs. Those infections could be reduced if hospitals were more hygienic, says a team of Spanish researchers who have created a line of antibacterial textiles.
According to their website, the so-called SONO project "will use a sonochemical technique to produce and deposit inorganic, antimicrobial nanoparticles on medical textiles, e.g. hospital sheets, medical coats and bandages."
Researchers used enzymes and ultrasonic radiation to bind the antimicrobial particles deep within the fabric, making it effective up to 70 wash cycles.
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Collaboration are currently underway between researchers and producers to make hospital gowns and linens. A Bulgarian hospital is testing the fabrics and has reported positive results so far.
via Phys.org
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