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Node Smith, ND
There is a new technique that has been developed which will allow the application of plant extracts – like tea tree oil – as a biologically active coating for medical devices. It is thought that this new coating could help prevent millions of infections by preventing biofilms from growing on medical hardware.1 The research scientists are from James Cook University in Australia.
The process has been born out of an increase in unplanned surgeries to fight infections caused by bacterial contamination of medical devices. “Biofilms” form on medical devices in hospitals and other care facilities, which have begun to cause quite the epidemic in hospital-acquired infections.
In the United States it is estimated that 17 million biofilm-related bacterial infections occur each year, ending in around 550,000 deaths. Upwards of 80 percent of surgery-associated infections may have to do with biofilms. The use of plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) may be able to help.
By converting PSMs into a polymer coating for medical devices – including implants – the broad-spectrum microbial actions of these herbal compounds can be utilized to prevent biofilm formation. The use of herbal compounds is more desirable than pharmaceutical antibiotics because bacteria are growing increased resistance to many antibiotic agents used in medicine.
Dr Katia Bazaka, adjunct senior research fellow and team member comments on the process: “We used plasma-enhanced techniques within a reactor containing the essential oil vapours. When the vapours are exposed to a glow discharge, they are transformed and settle on the surface of an implant as a solid biologically-active coating. These have shown good antibacterial properties.”
The process does not use toxic chemicals or solvents, so there is no risk of contamination with harmful chemicals; it’s also an environmentally safe process.
The coating is also optically transparent, which means that it can be use to cover lenses and screens as well.
Source:
Node Smith, ND, is a naturopathic physician in Portland, OR and associate editor for NDNR. He has been instrumental in maintaining a firm connection to the philosophy and heritage of naturopathic medicine among the next generation of docs. He helped found the first multi-generational experiential retreat, which brings elders, alumni, and students together for a weekend camp-out where naturopathic medicine and medical philosophy are experienced in nature. Four years ago he helped found the non-profit, Association for Naturopathic ReVitalization (ANR), for which he serves as the board chairman. ANR has a mission to inspire health practitioners to embody the naturopathic principles through experiential education. Node also has a firm belief that the next era of naturopathic medicine will see a resurgence of in-patient facilities which use fasting, earthing, hydrotherapy and homeopathy to bring people back from chronic diseases of modern living; he is involved in numerous conversations and projects to bring about this vision.
Node Smith, ND
There is a new technique that has been developed which will allow the application of plant extracts – like tea tree oil – as a biologically active coating for medical devices. It is thought that this new coating could help prevent millions of infections by preventing biofilms from growing on medical hardware.1 The research scientists are from James Cook University in Australia.
The process has been born out of an increase in unplanned surgeries to fight infections caused by bacterial contamination of medical devices. “Biofilms” form on medical devices in hospitals and other care facilities, which have begun to cause quite the epidemic in hospital-acquired infections.
In the United States it is estimated that 17 million biofilm-related bacterial infections occur each year, ending in around 550,000 deaths. Upwards of 80 percent of surgery-associated infections may have to do with biofilms. The use of plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) may be able to help.
By converting PSMs into a polymer coating for medical devices – including implants – the broad-spectrum microbial actions of these herbal compounds can be utilized to prevent biofilm formation. The use of herbal compounds is more desirable than pharmaceutical antibiotics because bacteria are growing increased resistance to many antibiotic agents used in medicine.
Dr Katia Bazaka, adjunct senior research fellow and team member comments on the process: “We used plasma-enhanced techniques within a reactor containing the essential oil vapours. When the vapours are exposed to a glow discharge, they are transformed and settle on the surface of an implant as a solid biologically-active coating. These have shown good antibacterial properties.”
The process does not use toxic chemicals or solvents, so there is no risk of contamination with harmful chemicals; it’s also an environmentally safe process.
The coating is also optically transparent, which means that it can be use to cover lenses and screens as well.
Source:
Node Smith, ND, is a naturopathic physician in Portland, OR and associate editor for NDNR. He has been instrumental in maintaining a firm connection to the philosophy and heritage of naturopathic medicine among the next generation of docs. He helped found the first multi-generational experiential retreat, which brings elders, alumni, and students together for a weekend camp-out where naturopathic medicine and medical philosophy are experienced in nature. Four years ago he helped found the non-profit, Association for Naturopathic ReVitalization (ANR), for which he serves as the board chairman. ANR has a mission to inspire health practitioners to embody the naturopathic principles through experiential education. Node also has a firm belief that the next era of naturopathic medicine will see a resurgence of in-patient facilities which use fasting, earthing, hydrotherapy and homeopathy to bring people back from chronic diseases of modern living; he is involved in numerous conversations and projects to bring about this vision.
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It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution
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