Saban Ventures is a subsidiary company in the Nanosonics stable, which appears to encompass Nanosonics' intellectual property pursuits.
A few days ago (23 /4/20), WIPO published Saban Ventures patent for an application that was filed last year (16/10/19), entitled "Endoscope Cleaning with Viscoelastic Liquid".
It's hard to wade through the esoteric language of a patent application and make complete sense of it, but my layman's take on it is that Saban Ventures has invented a process which can significantly reduce biocontaminants on the surface of endoscopes, including in areas of an endoscope such as endoscope lumens which are notoriously difficult to clean. Whether this is game-changing for the ultimate objective of reliable high level disinfection of endoscopes is difficult to say. However, from what I've read, it seems likely that this invention may well provide an incremental but valuable advance towards the above objective.
I found the following part of the Saban Ventures application to be an interesting and potentially instructive snippet in relation to the issues that are faced in endoscope reprocessing and why the process for which a patent was being sought by Saban Ventures might materially improve the effectiveness of endoscope reprocessing regimes:
"There is evidence of bacterial transmission between patients from inadequate cleaning and disinfection of internal structures of endoscopes which in turn has led to patients acquiring mortal infections. Between 2010 and 2015 more than 41 hospitals worldwide, most in the U.S., reported bacterial infections linked to the scopes, affecting 300 to 350 patients (http://www.modemheaithcare.com/article/20160415/NEWS/160419937). It would be expected that a reduction in the biocontaminant in various medical devices would produce a concomitant overall reduction in bioburden (the amount of pathogens) and ultimately reduce infection rates and mortality. In addition, if an endoscope is not properly cleaned and dried, biofilm can form on the interior surfaces of the device. Endoscope lumens are particularly prone to biofilm formation. They are exposed to significant amounts of biocontamination, and subsequent cleaning of the long narrow lumens is quite difficult due to inaccessibility and the inability to monitor the cleaning process. There is considerable pressure in medical facilities to reprocess endoscopes as quickly as possible. Because endoscopes are cleaned by hand, the training and attitude of the technician are important in determining the cleanliness of the device. Residual biofilm on instruments can result in a patient acquiring an endoscope acquired infection. Typically, these infections occur as outbreaks and can have fatal consequences for patients."
The process that formed the subject of the Saban Ventures patent application has apparently consumed a reasonable amount of Nanosonics R&D resources, given that 5 employees have been cited as contributors to the invention.
I've gone cold on the idea that Nanosonics autonomous UV and sensor based space disinfection technology might form the next product to be commercialised by the company as there has been no apparent impetus for fast tracking that technology to assist with space disinfection in a Covid 19 context. However, a process that very simply improves the initial surface cleaning of endoscopes and most particularly the removal of biocontaminants that can accumulate within endoscope lumens seems to me to tick quite a few boxes.
I'll be interested to hear the take that others may have about this process.
zeno9
NAN Price at posting:
$6.72 Sentiment: Hold Disclosure: Held
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