Copper as an antibacterial material in different facilities

The present study was performed in real life settings in different facilities (hospital, kindergarten, retirement home, office building) with copper and copper alloy touch surface products (floor drain lids, toilet flush buttons, door handles, light switches, closet touch surfaces, corridor hand rails, front door handles, and toilet support rails) parallel to reference products. Pure copper surfaces supported lower total bacterial counts (16 ± 45 vs 105 ± 430 CFU cm−2, N = 214, P < 0.001) and lower occurrence of Staphylococcus aureus (2.6% vs 14%, N = 157, P < 0.01) and Gram-negatives (21% vs 34%, N = 214, P < 0.05) respectively than did reference surfaces, whereas the occurrence of enterococci (15%, N = 214, P > 0.05) was similar. The studied products could be assigned into three categories according to their bacterial loads as follows (P < 0.001): floor drain lids (300 ± 730 CFU cm−2, N = 32), small area touch surfaces (8.0 ± 7.1 to 62 ± 160 CFU cm−2, N = 90) and large area touch surfaces (1.1 ± 1.1 to 1.7 ± 2.4 CFU cm−2, N = 92). In conclusion, copper touch surface products can function as antibacterial materials to reduce the bacterial load, especially on frequently touched small surfaces. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.