A recent report from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) helps underscore the need for Ondine’s light-activated antimicrobial technology, a much-needed innovation in the face of growing antibiotic resistance. The report reveals an alarming increase in antibiotic use and rising resistance and finds that 4.3 million patients in EU/EEA hospitals are affected by healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). Ondine’s technology offers a promising solution, now used across Canada and in the NHS. The technology kills all types of pathogens without causing resistance, addressing a critical gap in the fight against antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

The report, “Point prevalence survey of healthcare-associated infections and anti-microbial use in European acute care hospitals – 2022-2023”, showed that antibiotic usage has increased since the last report in 2016-17. In 2022-23, 35.5% of patients were found to have received at least one antimicrobial agent, compared to 32.9% in 2016-17. This increase in antibiotic use is particularly concerning because one in three microorganisms causing HAIs were found to be resistant to antibiotics, leaving doctors with fewer options to treat patients effectively.

ECDC Director Dr. Andrea Ammon said: “Healthcare-associated infections pose a significant challenge to patient safety in hospitals throughout Europe. These recent numbers highlight the urgent need for further actions to mitigate this threat. By prioritising infection prevention and control policies and practices, as well as antimicrobial stewardship and improving surveillance, we can effectively combat the spread of these infections and protect the health of patients across the EU/EEA.”

With the threat of antibiotic-resistant HAIs increasing year-on-year, there is a growing need for effective antimicrobials which do not generate resistance. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is responsible for 1.27 million deaths a year and is one of humanity’s most urgent global public health threats.[i] Ondine’s Steriwave light-activated antimicrobial technology is highly effective against all types of pathogens—viruses, bacteria and fungi—including those that cause HAIs, even those resistant to antibiotics.

Steriwave is a broad-spectrum light-activated antimicrobial that uses a patented photosensitizer and associated red light to destroy pathogens in the nose. The nose is a major reservoir of bacteria, fungi, and viruses, which can spread from there to cause serious infections. Unlike traditional antibiotics, Steriwave is immediately effective with a single five-minute treatment and does not trigger AMR.

In 2023, Ondine presented research at the 2023 International Consortium on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC) in Geneva, demonstrating that Steriwave was highly effective (>99.99% kills in 20 seconds) against both moderately drug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) bacteria.[ii]

Ondine’s Steriwave technology is already used in the UK in the NHS and extensively in hospitals across Canada to prevent HAIs. In 2024, hospitals in Spain became the first in the EU to adopt this groundbreaking technology. The prestigious Hospital Universitario La Paz (HULP), a large tertiary hospital in Madrid with 1,308 beds, is one of three Spanish hospitals using Steriwave.

According to the latest ECDC HAI surveillance report, the prevalence rate of HAIs in Spain is 8.2% compared to the median of 6.8%. Spain also had higher rates of antibiotic usage, with over 45% of patients with an HAI receiving antibiotics. More than 150,000 patients have been treated with Steriwave to date, and no serious side effects have been reported.