Far-UVC and UVC disinfection of healthcare fabrics: from laboratory evidence to clinical application

Ultraviolet disinfection technologies, particularly 222 nm far-UVC, have emerged as promising strategies for surface disinfection to mitigate healthcare-associated infections. This study systematically compared the disinfection efficiency of far-UVC and UVC against four clinically relevant MDR strains — methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli , and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium — on five healthcare textile types, including bedsheets, T-shirts, blankets, lab coats, and towels. At both applied doses of 8.1 and 40.5 mJ/cm², UVC demonstrated superior disinfection efficiency over far-UVC across the majority of single-layer textiles samples. Further analysis revealed that far-UVC disinfection efficiency exhibited a significantly stronger correlation with textiles light transmittance compared to UVC (R² = 0.86 vs. 0.37), prompting subsequent investigation into far-UVC bactericidal performance against MRSA on double-layer fabric configurations. On the bottom-layer fabric configurations, far-UVC achieved dose-dependent MRSA disinfection, with efficiency remaining governed by the light transmittance of the layer. In a subsequent clinical ward evaluation, a movable far-UVC disinfection system delivered irradiation across patient bedsheets surfaces, achieving a maximum MRSA log reduction of 3.94 ± 0.45 at the position directly beneath the far-UVC irradiation. Evaluation of high-touch surfaces indicated a disinfection efficiency of about 79%. These findings provide a quantitative basis for optimizing far-UVC deployment strategies, including fabric selection and spatial dose distribution, to maximize infection control efficacy in real-world healthcare settings.