As facilities look to cut down on health care acquired infections (HAIs), the UV disinfectant market is expanding. In recent months however, a dispute has arisen between two of the leading companies in the segment. Clorox has made the case that some of the marketing claims made by Xenex are unsubstantiated and misleading.

A press release issued by Xenex in early April outlined their perspective on the dispute. In order to obtain a fuller understanding of the Clorox perspective, DOTmed News sent a few questions to Keri Lestage, Tech Solutions Group Manager for Clorox Healthcare. She provided the following interview via e-mail:

DOTmed News: What specifically does Clorox feel is misleading about the Xenex claims?

Keri Lestage: Our biggest concern with Xenex’s marketing claims is misinformation and misleading claims that cast aspersions on the safety, speed and efficacy of UV systems with mercury lamps. However, the Clorox Healthcare™ Optimum-UV™ System is safe when used as directed.

Importantly, the system’s lamps, which contain a nominal amount of mercury, passed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) test, with a mercury level that is a full order of magnitude below the limits set by this test. Our system uses low-pressure mercury lamps, which contain the same amount of mercury per lamp as a common four-foot fluorescent bulb – about 20mg.

Fluorescent lamps account for only 0.07 percent of the mercury in the hospital: mercury can be found in many places including ICUs, ERs, surgery, laboratories, nursing stations, patient rooms, and storage and maintenance areas. Blood pressure monitors (sphygmomanometers) contain 70 to 90 g of mercury.

Xenex claims its disinfection process is faster and more effective than a mercury UV system, which is simply not true. Remember, speed is an important consideration, but run time alone does not tell the full story. Time, distance, and pathogen kill all need to be considered when comparing devices.

Clorox Healthcare provides time, distance, and pathogen kill information for the Optimum-UV™ System obtained through independently verified third-party laboratory testing that has shown a greater than 5.0 log reduction in five minutes at a distance of eight feet from the device for key health care pathogens.

DOTmed News: Does Clorox believe its Mercury bulb UV system is just as safe, fast, and effective as the Xenex pulsed xenon UV system?

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