Ondine Biomedical Inc (AIM:OBI) has joined forces with Montreal Heart Institute and Hôpital Fleurimont to pilot its Steriwave nasal photodisinfection technology in a bid to mitigate post-operative infections as antibiotic resistance rates soar.
The initiative aligns with the 2022 Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) guidelines, which have elevated nasal decolonization to an essential practice for orthopaedic and cardiothoracic surgeries.
Montreal Heart Institute, Canada's largest cardiology research centre, is evaluating Steriwave's impact on elective cardiac surgeries.
Concurrently, Hôpital Fleurimont is assessing the technology's efficacy in elective spine surgeries.
Steriwave uniquely eradicates all types of pathogens—viruses, bacteria, and fungi—in minutes, without fostering resistance.
Its use has led to improved post-surgical outcomes, including fewer surgical site infections (SSIs), reduced hospital stays and lower antibiotic prescription rates.
Surgical site infections pose severe risks, exacerbated by growing antibiotic resistance.
For instance, deep sternal infections can increase mortality risk by 40%, necessitating surgical intervention to prevent the spread to internal organs. The topical antibiotic mupirocin, commonly used for nasal decolonisation, has reported resistance rates as high as 81%.
Unlike mupirocin, Steriwave can eliminate even extensively drug-resistant pathogens, offering a promising alternative in the fight against antibiotic resistance.
"For patients, preventing a post-surgical infection can be the difference between life and death," Ondine chief executive Carolyn Cross.
"With its immediate, broad-spectrum efficacy - including against extensively drug-resistant (XDR) bacteria, the novel coronavirus, and the emerging fungal threat, Candida auris - without generating resistance, we believe that pre-surgical use of Steriwave can become the new standard of care for improved protection against serious post-surgical multi-drug resistant infections."