Ondine Biomedical Inc (AIM:OBI) hailed the deployment by Burnaby Hospital in Canada of its Steriwave nasal photodisinfection to mitigate post-surgical infections.
Burnaby Hospital, a large community hospital in British Columbia with affiliations to the University of British Columbia, was part of a "significant rise" in Canadian hospitals deploying Steriwave, the AIM-listed company said, following adoption or evaluation at Vancouver General Hospital, The Ottawa Hospital and the Montreal Heart Institute.
As post-surgical infections are a serious concern in the aftermath of any major surgical operation, Ondine said its nasal photodisinfection technology, which kills viruses, bacteria, and fungi without causing antimicrobial resistance, can reduce the incidence of post-surgical infections, improve patient care and reduce costs.
It also pointed out that more hospitals in North America have been encouraged to adopt it as a standard practice after the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) published updated guidelines in May.
Using the antibiotic mupirocin for nasal decolonization, which has been the standard of care, has been reported to have resistance rates as high as 81%.
Ondine chief executive Carolyn Cross said: "As a Canadian company pioneering this photodisinfection technology, it is fantastic to see more and more Canadian hospitals recognizing the importance of decolonizing pathogens in the nose to prevent post-surgical infections, and the need to do so without the use of antibiotics.
"We are very pleased to be working with the team at Burnaby Hospital who have initiated the use of our Steriwave nasal decolonization therapy to further enhance patient outcomes."