Germicidal UV Lights In Common Areas Of Long-Term Elder Care Facilities Does Not Reduce Acute Respiratory Infections Among Residents, Study Finds

MedPage Today (7/28, Phend) reports a study found that “shining germicidal UV lights toward the ceiling in common areas of long-term elder care facilities didn’t reduce acute respiratory infections for residents.” Researchers observed that the “respiratory infection incidence rate came out similar at 3.81 versus 4.17 infections per facility zone per 6-week cycle of intervention with the upper-room germicidal UV devices turned on versus off.” However, “pooling acute respiratory infections across all cycles of the study in a posteriori secondary analysis, UV appliance use had 0.32 fewer infections per week over the extended assessment period from 28 to 110 weeks.” The findings were published in JAMA Internal Medicine.