Antimicrobial Copper?

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01/16/2009

Jan. 16, 2009

Antimicrobial Copper?

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Using copper for some surfaces might help cut down on hospital-acquired infections. The EPA has registered copper and copper alloys including brass and bronze as antimicrobial materials, allowing an industry trade group, the Copper Development Association, to claim that copper "kills 99.9% of bacteria within two hours." Studies submitted by the trade group when seeking the ruling looked at the actions of the copper materials on organisms including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Escherichia coli O157:H7. We'll talk about what's known about copper as an antimicrobial.

Produced by Annette Heist, Senior Producer

Guests

Michael Schmidt
Professor, Microbiology and Immunology

Vice Chairman of Department

Medical University of South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina

Jan. 16, 2009