Lens Case Contamination In Vitro Study

Applicability of NCs as wound dressing biomaterials necessarily required the testing of their anti-bacterial potential. Moreover, the effect of AgNPs prepared from different concentrations of precursor salt for NCs development was studied on anti-bacterial activity. Bacteria exposed to NCs showed a zone of inhibition (ZOI), in contrast to bacteria exposed to SC-CNCs only (Fig. 6.10). The measurements of ZOI against each bacterium are presented (Table 6.2). Differences in growth inhibition of different bacteria exposed to NCs were observed, indicating that anti-bacterial action depends on the structural and chemical composition of the bacterial cell surface (Diez-Pascual and Diez-Vicente 2015). NC-1 showed maximum ZOI representing the remarkable inhibitory effect on bacterial growth followed by NC-2 and NC-3, respectively. Pure SC-CNCs were used as a negative control since it has no anti-bacterial activity. Bactericidal activity of NCs could be due to the diffusion of AgNPs from NCs to the culture medium. A large number of small-sized AgNPs present in NC-1 (21 ± 7 nm) showed stronger anti-microbial action in comparison to relatively large sized AgNPs of

I recommend that Vistakon commence its launch nationwide. 1-Day Acuvue Disposable Contact Lenses (1-D Acuvue) represents a differentiated and exciting soft contact lens product. The point of difference of 1-D Acuvue relative to other soft contact lenses is its convenience and comfort. The primary market segment for 1-D Acuvue is the part-time contact lens wearer (3.9MM of total U.S population), who wore them only on certain events. Vistakon would encounter less price resistance with these part-time users due to the less frequency use, and more willing to pay a higher unit price than regular daily wear customers due to the product’s high quality, convenience and comfort. Secondary market segment is the full-time (conventional and frequent

Rubbing alcohol, also known as isopropyl alcohol “refers to two water-soluble chemical compounds—ethyl alcohol and isopropyl alcohol—that have generally underrated germicidal characteristics” (“Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities”). Ethyl alcohol kills bacteria in two ways: “protein denaturation and dissolving the lipid membrane” (“How Does Ethyl Alcohol Kill Bacteria?“). Next, Betadine, also known as Povidone-iodine is a solution [that is] often used in hand scrubs and hand rubs in hospital settings” (Ngan). It is used in “Treating minor wounds and infections, as well as killing bacteria” (“Povidone/ iodine solution”). Povidone-iodine’s way of killing bacteria is still being researched and “is yet to be fully understood, [but] it appears to have the ability to penetrate the cell wall of bacteria and affect their structure and function. This ensures their rapid destruction and helps protect against wound and skin infection” (“What is an Antiseptic”). Germ-X Hand Sanitizer is a hand gel that is used for waterless “washing” of hands to kill germs on the surface. It is an antiseptic primarily used by those who want to kill germs quickly and cannot wash their hands (Samuels). The formula contains about 63 percent ethyl alcohol according to livestrong.com (Samuels). Neosporin is a topical antibiotic used to

9. After the 48 hour time period the inhibition of the Escherichia coli bacteria around the disinfectant disks was measured. A ruler was used to measure the clearing from the edge of the disk to the perimeter of the clearing. Irregularities in the clearing were not included in the area of clearing.

Colloidal silver can reduce the body’s ability to absorb antibiotics, rendering them less effective. It also interacts with levothyroxine, a thyroid medication.

* Hand washing is the most important method of preventing the spread of infection by contact (Ayliffe et al 1999). The Nottingham University Trust Policy on Hand Hygiene (2009) states that there are three types of hand hygiene, the first is ‘routine hand hygiene’ which involves the use of soap and water for 15 – 20 seconds or the application of alcohol hand rub until the hand are dry. The second is ‘hand disinfection’ which should be used prior to an aseptic procedure by washing with soap and water and applying alcohol hand rub afterwards. The third is ‘surgical hand washing’ which is the application of a microbial agent to the hands and wrists for two minutes. In addition to which a sterile, disposable brush may be used for the first surgical hand wash of the day although continued use will encourage colonisation of microbes. The third example is the most appropriate to any O.D.P undertaking the surgical role as it is the best way for the surgical team to eliminate transient flora and reduce resident skin flora (World Health Organization 2010). The first and second are important to any O.D.P undertaking any other role within the Operating Department as this is the best way to reduce the transient microbial flora without necessarily affecting the resident skin flora

Hospital acquired infections (HAIs) affect over 1.7 million patients each year, causing almost 100,000 deaths annually in the United States alone (Johnson, 2010). According to the World Health Organization, HAIs are the most frequent adverse event in the healthcare industry. Fortunately, most of these infections can be prevented with one single intervention, proper hand hygiene (“The Evidence,” n.d.). Four out of five pathogens that cause illness are spread by direct contact. Proper hand hygiene eliminates these pathogens and helps to prevent cross-contamination and HAIs (Linton, 2015; “Hand Hygiene,” n.d.). Reduction of cross-contamination and HAIs improves patient outcomes, increases employee wellness, and lowers health care costs. Adherence to proper hand hygiene is the single most important safety measure in the health care setting. However, for many years compliance to proper hand hygiene in the healthcare industry has been dismally low. New and inventive measures must be implemented to increase compliance to proper hand hygiene and lower the rate of hospital-acquired infections.

It is very difficult to treat bacterial biofilm infection. Antibiotic treatment by itself is not enough to destroy biofilm infections adequately. Overall, the approaches to combat biofilms can be categorized into two groups depending if the infection involves a foreign body or not. If the biofilm infection does not involving a foreign body (such as indwelling implants), continuing treatment using high doses of combination of several antibiotics with different mode of action toward the bacteria is used to combat the infection. On the other hand, if a foreign body is involved in the biofilm infection, extraction of the implant is needed for positive result. In some cases, only physical reduction of the biofilm is possible (using mechanical methods)

After that, we can track and record the survivorship between the 2 groups over consistent time intervals. According to a case study that took place in Ruđer Bošković Institute, silver ions are detrimental to many species of microorganisms. In this study, E.coli were tested on agar plates to test the effects of silver nanoparticles, which led to damage in the cellular structure of E.coli bacteria (Sondi 177-178). It would be interesting to see if our experimental results would match this case study's results. In addition to this, our experiment could be further extended by testing and comparing the effects of the different variations of silver nanoparticles (batch a, b, c, d) to determine which reagents are most effective in synthesizing anti-microbials.

Nutrient Broth and Nutrient Agar were used to inoculate bacteria taken from different surfaces. Nutrient agar plate was inoculated with a sample taken from skin surface. A sterile cotton swab was first immersed on sterile water, then, rubbed against the skin with swirling motion and transferred to an agar plate by rubbing

The cornea is the outermost layer of the eye. It is smooth, clear and referred to as the window of the eye, because the cornea allows light to pass through to the eye. The cornea also helps to shield the eye from harmful matter, such as dust and germs. It is responsible for about 65 percent of focusing power for the eye. When light enters through the cornea, it bends and refocuses the light to the retina, which begins translating the light into vision. In order to see clearly, the light rays must be precisely focused when going from the cornea into the retina. An rregular corneal surface is common and may be caused by a number of different reasons, such as genetically inherited, injury, disease or natural occurrences.

With today's advances in medicine, silver nitrate application has been replaced with newer antibiotics for the treatment of neonatal conjunctivitis. These appear to have fewer side effects but similar efficacy. The question remains if the use of antibiotics is necessary at all, especially with the growing antimicrobial resistance we face today. As physicians, we must constantly ask the question "Do the benefits we seek today, truly outweigh the risks we may face tomorrow or in future generations."

Our hypothesis was supported by our results, in the fact that the zone of inhibition was created through the use of hand sanitizer against the gram-positive bacteria. Problems that could’ve occur during the experiment would be through the way the disks were soaked in the hand sanitizer, some of them had more of the hand sanitizer than others, which caused a significant difference in percentage covered for the zone of inhibition. This is significant because hand sanitizer does work in eliminating bacteria as well as viruses because it reduces the risk of infection and illness (Tamimi, 3340). Others should care about the results of this experiment because it does show that by using hand sanitizer will drop an individuals risk of contracting bad

It like a trivial thing, but putting in contacts brings clarity to a blurry morning for much of the population. The task starts with retrieving the lenses and wetting solution. Placing the contact on the eyeball is a tricky step with which one must become comfortable. The wetting solution provides soothing relief once it is placed on the contact and serves to reduce eye irritation. These are the necessary steps for putting in a contact, because if not done properly a contact lens can scratch and damage the eye.

However, behaviors such as topping off solution and swimming with contacts in are examples of bad contact lens hygiene. While it is difficult to determine the percentage of Americans who practice bad contact lens hygiene, it is easy to identify the amount of eye infections recorded and relate each case to how an individual cares for his or her contacts. In 2015, 40.9 million adults were estimated to wear contacts according to the Centers for Disease Control. While just simply wearing contacts makes an individual 10 times more likely to contract an eye infection (Reddy), unhealthy contact hygiene can increase this likelihood severely. Eye infections in the United States have increased since the 1980’s and between 1980 and 1988, 85% of bacterial eye infection cases that were reported, all involved contact lenses (Joslin, et., 169). Even though contacts and contact products have improved and the chances of these products contracting microorganisms is lower than before, people who participate in unhealthy contact lens behavior increase their chances of developing infections just as equally as people did in 1980 (Joslin, et.,