Vioguard Self-Sanitizing Keyboard introduced in Canada; UV light kills H1N1, MRSA and healthcare-associated infections
Introduction at American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) 91st annual meeting, October 12-17 in Toronto
TORONTO— Vioguard LLC, www.vioguard.com, is introducing the world’s first self-sanitizing computer keyboard to kill healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) at the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) 91st annual meeting, October 12-17 in Toronto. The event marks the first availability of the innovative keyboard for medical market uses and consumers in Canada.
Members of Vioguard’s management team will be available at booth #2334 during the meeting.
Harnessing the power and properties of ultraviolet light, Vioguard’ s proprietary UVKB50 self-sanitizing keyboard is being introduced at a time when healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) strike an estimated 250,000 hospital patients in Canada each year--due to infections that were unrelated to the original cause of admittance to hospital. These “superbugs” kill an estimated 8,000 to 12,000 Canadians each year, according to 2008 statistics from Canadian Foundation for Infectious Diseases (CFID).
Ultraviolet light is known to be affective against harmful microorganisms such as H1N1, MRSA and molds. Based on independent laboratory testing, the ultraviolet light generated by the unit’s two powerful 25-watt germicidal fluorescent lamps killed more than 99.99% of harmful bacteria in less than 90 seconds.
Priced at $899, it is currently available through Amazon.com.
Vioguard’s product has the look and feel of a standard notebook keyboard, and requires no software or special hardware to function. On a user-triggered or predetermined basis, the Vioguard keyboard automatically retracts into its own clean, “light tight” enclosure and safely floods the keyboard with ultraviolet light.
With widespread use of electronic medical records in Canada and elsewhere, shared computer keyboards have emerged as one of the prime focal points of contamination in dental offices and other medical environments. Manual cleaning is currently the most common method of disinfecting keyboards. To be effective, keyboards should be wiped down repeatedly throughout the day--which is often difficult, impractical and labour-intensive.
Developed by former Microsoft Hardware veterans and their business partners, the self-sanitizing keyboard is the first product introduced by Bothell, Washington-based Vioguard.
“The spread of HAIs is a complex problem that the healthcare industry is attempting to tackle every day. We believe Vioguard is offering a new and effective tool in this fight,” said Vioguard’s Chief Technical Officer Craig Ranta, a former Microsoft Hardware engineering director.
The keyboard is now available for use by medical-oriented customers and consumers in Canada. In the United States, it is currently designated as an investigational device, limited by Federal (or United States) law to investigational use pending U.S. Food & Drug Administration clearance. FDA clearance is anticipated in the first quarter of 2010.
How it works
Since the early 20th century, ultraviolet germicidal irradiation has been studied and used for disinfection. Microbes are uniquely vulnerable to the effects of UV light at specific wavelengths that contain just the right amount of energy to break down organic molecular bonds.
The key to the effectiveness of the product is not only the UV technology but specific and proprietary features, including:
Automatic
Disinfects the keyboard after each use. The user no longer has
to manually wipe down the
keyboard to keep it clean.
Easy to use
No flat, hard to use keyboard or keyboard cover. The keyboard features a high quality laptop
style keyset and an advanced state of the art multi-touch track pad.
Easy to install
The keyboard unit is designed as a simple “plug-and-play” tool that works
without the need of additional software.
Reliable
Self monitoring to ensure consistent UV exposure every time and
extensive lifecycle testing for robustness.
“Our keyboard was designed to be durable, efficient and user-friendly where computer keyboards are shared,” said John Sharps, Vioguard’s Vice President of Development and Manufacturing who previously oversaw development and manufacturing of Microsoft Hardware products. “By presenting a disinfected keyboard to each user, our goal is to dramatically reduce cross-contamination in shared computer environments.”
