Star Wars-Like Robot Uses Ultraviolet Rays to Kill Bacterial Infection in Hospitals

Ultraviolet(UV) rays used by a robot can kill up to 70% of bacteria in hospital rooms in just 12 minutes. An Indian origin scientist conducted a study to check the effectiveness of the robot to help clean hospital rooms. The key to //prevent the spread of infection from one patient to another in a hospital environment is cleanliness. Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a fatal strain of bacteria harbor in hospital rooms such as surfaces of tray tables, bedrails, call buttons and grab bars.

Chetan Jinadatha, Assistant professor at the Health Science Center College of Medicine, Texas A&M University, said, "A typical 100-bed hospital sees about 10-20 hospital-acquired infections a year. Our goal is to get to zero infections.”

Jinadatha focused his research on using technology to prevent hospital-acquired infections. The device resembles the fictional robot in Star Wars known as R2-D2, has a large saucer-shaped head on top of a column that rises up to reveal a bulb filled with xenon gas.

UV light binds to the DNA of organisms and kills them. The xenon UV light system cut the amount of bacteria in the room by about 70% in just 12 minutes.

Jinadatha stresses that he would never recommend a hospital to use the UV light system by itself, but he believes it does have value as a "safety net" to kill bacteria that traditional cleaning may miss.

Source-Medindia