REDUCTION OF THE NEUTRALISATION TIME DURING ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY TESTING OF DISINFECTANTS ACCORDING TO EUROPEAN STANDARDS

Background. Evaluation of the biocidal activity of chemical disinfectants and antiseptics according to European Standards (EN) is based on determination of the reduction of the number of viable test microorganisms under defined conditions. Objective. The objective of this study was to investigate whether reducing the neutralization time required following de-clared product contact times for the tested microorganisms yields method validations. Material and methods. This study was conducted on 14 products containing active substances from different chemical groups: alcohols, aldehydes, biguanides, quaternary ammonium compounds, phenols, amines derivatives, oxidizing agents. These products were tested according to phase 1 tests: EN 1040:2005 and EN 1275:2005 and then according to phase 2