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The Cutting Edge

Keep It Clean with Copper

Hospital-acquired infections are a huge public-health burden, and hospital environments play a key role in harboring potentially deadly bacteria such as E. coli, C. difficile and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. These microbes may persist for extended periods in the hospital, on surfaces such as bed rails, doorknobs, chairs, tray tables, toilet seats and even call buttons in patient rooms.

Copper surfaces, which are not routinely used in hospitals, are known to kill bacteria on contact, and studies have found much lower levels of bacteria living on copper surfaces than on standard hospital surfaces.

An interdisciplinary team from UCLA is now conducting a randomized clinical trial to determine if the reduction of surface bacteria due to the use of copper will result in a decreased number of hospital-acquired infections. Two intensive care units at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center will be outfitted with copper, sham stainless steel or conventional surfaces such as plastic or other types of coatings. Over a four-year period, all three surface types will be sampled for bacteria levels, and patient-infection outcome rates will be compared among the three surfaces.

"We will be studying if lowering the level of bacteria on hospital surfaces results in reduced infection rates in patients, better outcomes and even lower costs," says Daniel Uslan, MD, director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program for UCLA Health.

The initial idea for the hospital-based study came from research by Peter Sinsheimer, PhD '09, executive director of the UCLA Sustainable Technology and Policy Program, on the viability of alternatives to lead-based copper piping in delivering safer drinking water.

"Finding effective interventions to reduce hos-pital infection rates in a cost-effective manner is an emerging priority for U.S. hospitals," says Gerald Kominski, PhD, director of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. "This study will provide valuable information on whether or not copper-touch surfaces are a cost-effective technology for achieving this goal."


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Spring 2013

Spring 2013
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IN THIS ISSUE
  • No More Dreams Deferred
  • Once-Fragile Newborns Return to Give Thanks
  • A Better Way to Make Bone
  • Keep It Clean with Copper
  • Fitness Training for the Brain
  • How to Prove a Sexual Addiction
  • Sleep, Perchance to Remember
  • In Vitro Fertilization Linked to Increased Risk of Birth Defects
  • Imaging the Impact of High-Impact Sports
  • Potential New Treatment to Stop Alzheimer’s Disease
  • Redirect Wasted Healthcare Dollars to Transform America
  • Going Viral to Kill Zits
  • David Hayes-Bautista, PhD
  • Pushing It
  • Cindy Abbott's Incredible Journey
  • Getting a Grasp on Science
  • When Cancer and Depression Collide
  • The Dualist
  • Dr. Magic
  • Awards/Honors
  • Postcard from Kenya
  • In His Own Words: Chi Y. Chung, MD, FACS
  • Medical Mission Opportunities in Malawi
  • Revamping MAA 2013 Reunion
  • A Visionary Evening
  • Events
  • UCLA Health Board Inaugural Meeting
  • In Memoriam
  • Gifts
  • History Lesson
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