Germs and sneezes spread diseases - and we all need to do our part to prevent bacterial infection. New tests have shown that the keyboard sanitizer, Germ Genie, is effective against C.diff.

Put that burger down, right now

Computer keyboards are notorious for being full of germs, and those belonging to programmers are probably worse than most owing to lovely habits like eating at our desks and generally being relaxed about getting out there with the antibacterial wipes. A new device may just save you from getting contaminated by your keyboard.

Scientists at the University of Hertfordshire have now shown that Germ Genie, a tool developed by Falcon Innovations to prevents infections from keyboards by killing bacteria, is able to kill one of the very nastiest -  C.difficile.

Micrograph of C.difficile

C. difficile (Clostridium difficile) is a bacterium found in the environment that’s particularly difficult to kill. It is most common in hospitals and areas where symptomatic patients have been present. One unnerving point made by the researchers is that C.difficile is particularly difficult to guard against because alcohol-based hand rubs of the sort you commonly find in hospitals are ineffective against it.

Germ Genie kills 99 percent of germs across most of the keyboard in two minutes, and across the whole keyboard in ten minutes. It works by sensing finger movement on the computer keyboard, and after the user has finished it sanitises the keyboard with UV light. This treatment leaves the keyboard ready for the next user so they will not pick up microbes that would otherwise have posed a risk of passing on infections like flu, MRSA and E.Coli.

Tests by the University of Hertfordshire showed that as well as C. difficile, Germ Genie kills E.Coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtillis. Quite puts you off finishing that burger while checking your emails, really, and as for doing it down at the internet cafe….

More information:

Germ Genie Kills KeyBoard Germs Even C.difficile