Antimicrobial activity of a formulation for the low temperature disinfection of critical and semi-critical medical equipment and surfaces

The antimicrobial activity of the disinfectant formulation UMONIUM ³⁸ (Isopropyl-tridecyl-dimethyl-ammonium; Huckert's International, Nivelles, Belgium) planned for the low temperature disinfection of critical and semi-critical medical equipment and surfaces was evaluated under clean and dirty experimental conditions (high and low concentrations of organic material). The formulation was obtained by a synergic combination of three different active compounds, two alcohols and a quaternary ammonium. The anti-mycobacterial (Mycobacterium avium and Mycobactenum terrae), and antiviral (Poliovirus type 1, Adenovirus type 5, hepatitis B virus, and human immunodeficiency virus type 1) activities of this formulation were addressed using suspension assays. In addition, surface assays were also used to test the antibacterial (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Eschenchia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus hirae) and antimycotic (Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger) activities. The data document the dynamics of the antimicrobial activity under in vitro controlled conditions and highlight the relatively low influence of organic material on its activity.