Application of copper bactericidal properties in medical practice Aplicación de la capacidad bactericida del cobre en la práctica médica
Author
dc.contributor.author
Prado, Valeria
Author
dc.contributor.author
Vidal, Roberto
Author
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Durán, Claudia
Admission date
dc.date.accessioned
2019-03-15T16:04:17Z
Available date
dc.date.available
2019-03-15T16:04:17Z
Publication date
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2012
Cita de ítem
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Revista Medica de Chile, Volumen 140, Issue 10, 2018, Pages 1325-1332
Identifier
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00349887
Identifier
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07176163
Identifier
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10.4067/S0034-98872012001000014
Identifier
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https://repositorio.uchile.cl/handle/2250/165928
Abstract
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Copper is essential for cell metabolism in animals and plants and thus for life. Along centuries, copper has been identified as a metal containing antimicrobial properties. In recent years, laboratory assays and clinical studies have revealed that surfaces of metallic copper or its alloys, containing at least 70% copper, eliminate in a few hours several pathogenic organisms including bacterial strains associated with nosocomial infections, influenza virus, HIV, and fungi such as Candida albicans. In March 2008, the American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), supported by scientific evidence gathered to date, registered copper as the first and only metal with antimicrobial properties. We herein review certain mechanisms proposed for the antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal activity of copper. We also discuss in vitro and clinical efficacy studies developed world wide and in Chile, focusing on bactericidal activity of copper surface areas in comparison to materials typically used