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Is OPTIM effective against Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)?

OPTIM is proven effective against viruses tougher than the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Here’s what you need to know to choose the right surface disinfectant to clean and disinfect your dental operatory.

Is OPTIM effective against Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)?

OPTIM is proven effective against viruses tougher than the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Here’s what you need to know to choose the right surface disinfectant to clean and disinfect your dental operatory.

Is OPTIM effective against Novel Coronavirus?

Yes. OPTIM disinfectants are proven effective against viruses much tougher to inactivate than Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), such as Poliovirus and Norovirus. This means the OPTIM disinfectants can be used against COVID-19 on hard, non-porous surfaces and non-critical medical devices.

What should I look for in a surface disinfectant?

In a viral outbreak, such as the one we are experiencing, use a hospital disinfectant that has a virucidal claim against Poliovirus, Norovirus or Adenovirus. The disinfectant must be registered (look for the DIN, EPA, or CE mark on the label) and have something called a broad-spectrum claim.

What is a broad-spectrum claim?

There are different classes of pathogens, (i.e. bacteria, virus, etc.) and each class has been assigned specific microorganisms which are reflective of the gold standard or more-difficult-to-kill pathogen in that class.

A disinfectant that can deactivate the gold standard in each of the classes, can claim to be a broad-spectrum disinfectant.

What is OPTIM’s contact time for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) and what does that mean?

The contact time is the length of time a disinfectant must be wet on a surface to achieve the desired efficacy result. OPTIM Blue and OPTIM 33TB have a one-minute virucidal contact time. OPTIM 1 has a 30-second virucidal contact time. That means that the surface must remain wet for only 1 minute in order to inactivate viruses including Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).*

How do you know OPTIM is effective against an emerging virus like Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) if it wasn’t tested?

OPTIM has been proven to inactivate Poliovirus, a non-enveloped virus that is much tougher to destroy than the Novel Coronavirus, an enveloped virus.

Here’s how it works: Since it is both impractical and impossible to test disinfectants against all known and emerging viruses quickly enough to address urgent infection control needs particularly during an outbreak, regulators like the EPA, Health Canada and Europe’s CEN stick to a set of guiding principles or standards.

Disinfectants must meet the requirements of the EPA’s emerging viral pathogens claim, Health Canada’s Broad Spectrum Virucide claim for emerging pathogens or the disinfectant testing guidelines stated in the CEN overview standard EN 14885 and virucidal standard EN 14476.

What do these Guiding Principles or Standards define?

According to these guiding principles, a disinfectant may be considered effective against an emerging virus as long as it is capable of destroying or irreversibly inactivating at least one virus on a list of hard-to-kill non-enveloped viruses (Poliovirus, Norovirus or Adenovirus). OPTIM disinfectants inactivate Poliovirus, which belongs to that list. Since they can inactivate Polio, then they can also inactivate Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), which belongs to a less robust class of enveloped viruses.

Have Health Canada and the EPA ever used those guiding principles before?

Yes. In fact, due to OPTIM’s ability to inactivate Poliovirus, Accelerated Hydrogen Peroxide® (the main ingredient in OPTIM) was named the chemical surface disinfectant of choice during the SARS outbreak of 2003. It was used across Canada for disinfection within all healthcare facilities.

OPTIM* 33TB is available in Canada, the USA, and Europe. OPTIM 1 is available in the USA and Europe. OPTIM Blue is available in Europe.

Bibliography

European Committee for Standardization (CEN). (2018, November). BS EN 14885:2018 Chemical disinfectants and antiseptics - Application of European Standards for chemical disinfectants and antiseptics.

Health Canada. (2014, January). Guidance document - Safety and efficacy requirements for hard surface disinfectant drugs. Retrieved from https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-health-products/drug-products/applications-submissions/guidance-documents/disinfectants/safety-efficacy-requirements-hard-surface-disinfectant-drugs.html#b5

United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). (2016, August 19). Guidance to Registrants: Process for Making Claims Against Emerging Viral Pathogens Not On EPA-Registered Disinfectant Labels. Retrieved from https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2016-09/documents/emerging_viral_pathogen_program_guidance_final_8_19_16_001_0.pdf

Virox Technologies. (2020, January 23). Virox Corp News. Retrieved from https://virox.com/making-news/category/virox-corp-news/