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The World Health Organization had classified the abrupt breakout of the Sars-Cov-2 virus a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, which progressed to a Pandemic in March 2020.
Combating the COVID-19 Pandemic necessitated the international collaboration of life scientists from all walks of life. During their research into the virus, health specialists revealed that the virus was primarily transmitted through the inhalation of large respiratory droplets in the air, as well as touching contaminated surfaces such as the palms of one’s hands, furniture, clothing, doorknobs, phones, and utensils.
Global health specialists recognised the importance of disinfecting environmental surfaces on a continuous basis to slow the rate of spread (hard surfaces and hands). As a result, disinfectants became increasingly popular on the market. While there are a variety of disinfectants available on the market, not all of them may meet the regulatory standards necessary to properly treat the virus.
That is why the Biocidal Products Regulation (BPR) of the European Union, the EPA Antimicrobial Pesticides OCSPP of the United States, and other international organisations have established clear-cut disinfectant performance/efficacy testing criteria and requirements. The next section outlines how this should be accomplished, as well as the standards that disinfectants must achieve.
Chemical Disinfectants
Disinfectants, also known as biocides, are chemically prepared agents whose core function is to make harmless, reduce or destroy harmful microorganisms such as viruses, bacteria, yeasts and mould spores. While they do not necessarily kill the living organism, by applying them on environmental surfaces, they will exert controlling force on the media and mitigate against further transmission of the pathogens. Some of these disinfectant agents include:
- Alcohol.
- Formaldehyde
- Peracetic acid.
- Hydrogen peroxide.
- Glutaraldehyde
- Ortho-phthalaldehyde (OPA)
- Chlorine and chlorine compounds.
- Iodophors
Disinfectant Testing
To ensure the efficacy of disinfectants in the market, testing requirements and standards need to be met. The right quality control and testing methods can validate the effectiveness of a specific disinfectant against the COVID-19 virus.
The minimum testing methods include the germ kill efficacy test, minimum inability concentration tests, virucidal activities against Beta-coronavirus and hand rub and hand wash studies. Ideally, all these tests need to have an independent pass against a SARS-CoV-2 surrogate to lay a claim of effectiveness.
Any of the following disinfectant test reports should be seen on the approved product;
- Standard: >4 log reduction in virus titre (ASTM E1052-11 or ASTM E1053-97(2002)
- Surface products: EN 14476: 2013 + A1 2015 ( at least over 5 minutes against the virus)
- Hand Products: EN 14476: 2013 + A1 2015 (at least over 2 minutes against the virus).
Meeting the EU & International Quality Standards
For the product to receive final authorization for market use, it needs to have the European Union Biocidal Products Regulation (Regulation (EU) No 528/2012) or ‘BPR’ number and approval. This ensures the said product has the required active ingredients to be effective as a disinfectant for either hard surface or rubbing hands against the COVID-19 virus.
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References
The Australian Government Manual, (instructions for disinfectant testing),March 2020 Reprot, available via https://www.tga.gov.au/sites/default/files/tga-instructions-disinfectant-testing.pdf
The European Centre for Disease Control & Infection, March 2020 Technical Report * Disinfection Of Environments In Healthcare And Nonhealthcare Settings Potentially Contaminated With SARS-Cov-2
Website Accessed 11 July 2021. https://www.eurofins.com/consumer-product-testing/covid-19-product-testing/disinfectants/
Website Accessed 12 July 2021. https://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/coronavirus.html
