圣母大学团队开发低成本硅基涂层，预防导管相关尿路感染
Notre Dame researchers develop low-cost approach to preventing catheter infections
圣母大学研究人员开发出一种硅基涂层，用于在感染发生前阻断导管相关尿路感染（CAUTI），临床前研究显示该涂层可减少有助于感染定植的堆积物。该涂层预计使现有导管成本增加约1美元，而CAUTI每年给美国医疗系统造成最高18.2亿美元的损失。研究团队正与真菌致病机制专家合作，探索该技术对真菌性CAUTI的预防作用，并评估其在中心静脉导管、透析导管、脑支架和假体等器械上的应用潜力。
A $1 modification to a common medical device could help prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infections.
, /PRNewswire/ -- Urinary catheters are essential medical devices, but they can also create an opportunity for infection. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 15% to 25% of hospitalized patients receive urinary catheters, and about 75% of urinary tract infections developed in hospitals are associated with a catheter.
Preventing catheter-associated UTIs
Catheter insertion can irritate and damage the bladder, causing the body to send healing proteins to the area. Bacteria and fungi can then stick to those proteins and cause infection.
Microbiologist Ana Flores-Mireles and her team have developed a silicone-based coating designed to interrupt that process. Early results are promising: In preclinical studies, the coating reduced the buildup that helps infections take hold.
Coating catheters is not new, she acknowledged. "What our research has done is open a new avenue where we are understanding exactly what is happening, and by understanding what is happening, we're able to target and develop efficient intervention strategies."
Catheter-associated UTIs are estimated to cost US healthcare systems up to $1.82 billion each year. Flores-Mireles estimates that applying the coating would add about $1 to the cost of an existing catheter.
That relatively small investment could help reduce the broader costs of CAUTIs, lessen the physical and financial burden on patients, and make the technology accessible in lower-resource settings.
Targeting bacterial and fungal infections
The technology could eventually be used beyond urinary catheters. Researchers see potential applications for central lines, dialysis catheters, brain stents, and prostheses—medical devices that can improve or sustain life but can also create pathways for infection.
Biological sciences professor Felipe Santiago-Tirado specializes in fungal pathogenesis, the study of how fungi cause infection and disease. His research found that certain fungi behave similarly to bacteria. He has partnered with Flores-Mireles to study whether fungal CAUTIs can be prevented with the same technology.
Additional study is needed before the technology can reach patients. But understanding how medical devices interact with the body and microbes could help researchers develop better ways to prevent infections and make widely used medical technology safer for patients.
Learn how a low-cost catheter adaptation could help prevent bacterial and fungal infections.
About the University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame is a leading global Catholic research university and a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), a consortium of the nation's leading public and private research universities. The only explicitly religious institution in the AAU, Notre Dame advances research and scholarship in service to humanity, pursuing discoveries that address complex challenges, improve lives, and contribute to the common good.
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SOURCE University of Notre Dame
来源：PR Newswire Health · prnewswire.com