Hartalega Malaysia and Chemical Intelligence UK have announced the European launch of the world’s-first non-leaching antimicrobial medical glove.
The product, manufactured by Hartalega, has in-built antimicrobial technology proven to kill micro-organisms in order to prevent the spread of infections.
The ‘game-changing’ product – available to private and public health organisations – is the first to contain a new active micro-organism-killing molecule designed to prevent the spread of bacteria to and from surfaces and people.
With the technology built into the glove, it does not need applications of further solutions or chemicals.
And bacteria coming into contact will be exposed to the antimicrobial activity which, in independent testing, achieved up to a 5-log (99.999%) kill within just five minutes of contact.
Hartalega funded and backed UK-based antimicrobial research and development specialists, Chemical Intelligence, in the development of the revolutionary technology alongside chemist, Dr Paul Wight, and microbiologist, Professor Richard James from the University of Nottingham.
This ground-breaking innovation – which also has the patent in the US – is the result of a joint mission between the two companies.
“By renovating a medical device that has not been remodelled in over 30 years, our innovation is set to make waves in the healthcare industry and save lives across the globe
Speaking about the technological breakthrough, Kuan Mun Leong, managing director of Hartalega Holdings Berhad, said: “In the European Union alone, cross-contamination in hospitals results in 37,000 deaths a year at an additional cost of seven billion euros.
“By renovating a medical device that has not been remodelled in over 30 years, our innovation is set to make waves in the healthcare industry and save lives across the globe.”
The product has been in the research and development phase for over six years, with millions of dollars of funding already being channelled into it and various stages of testing completed.
Set to be made available in hospitals around the world shortly, the product is being produced at a low cost in order to prevent barriers to access.
Founder of Chemical Intelligence, Rob Gros, said: “After years of development, we are delighted to finally release this product to market and truly believe it will make a significant difference in the fight against healthcare associated infections (HAIs).”
