Royal Columbian Hospital reports pneumonia drop with nasal photodisinfection

Royal Columbian Hospital researchers presented early ICU data in Lisbon showing a 39.5% drop in pneumonia rates after nasal photodisinfection was introduced. The pilot was not designed to prove statistical efficacy, but it did find lower nasal microbial burden and no treatment-related adverse events, setting up a larger trial.

Why it matters: - ICU pneumonia can prolong ventilation, delay discharge and increase pressure on scarce critical care beds. - The Royal Columbian Hospital findings point to a possible new prevention tool for ventilator-associated pneumonia and hospital-acquired pneumonia. - If confirmed in a larger trial, the approach could change how hospitals reduce respiratory infections in critically ill patients.

What happened: - Dr. Elizabeth Rohrs, principal investigator at Royal Columbian Hospital and RCH Foundation Research Director, presented results from the SMURF Feasibility Pilot Study at the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine congress in Lisbon this week. - The pilot found a 39.5% reduction in pneumonia rates after nasal photodisinfection was introduced. - Pneumonia rates fell from 14.9 to 9.0 cases per 1,000 ICU patient-days.

The details: - The SMURF study name stands for Suppression of Microbial Burden to Reduce Pneumonia in Critical Illness. - The pilot was published in the peer-reviewed journal Critical Care. - The study was not powered to show a statistically significant reduction in pneumonia. - The study did show a statistically significant reduction in nasal microbial burden. - No intervention-related adverse events were reported. - The findings support a larger multicentre randomised trial. - This was the first use of nasal photodisinfection therapy in an ICU setting. - Hospitals across Canada and the UK already use the therapy before surgery to lower surgical site infection risk. - The research suggests lowering microbial burden in the nose, a potential reservoir of respiratory pathogens, could help reduce pneumonia risk.

Between the lines: - The early signal is stronger for biological effect than for hard clinical proof, so the result is promising but still preliminary. - The lack of adverse events may help the therapy’s case as a low-burden prevention step, if larger studies confirm benefit. - The presentation adds to a broader effort to find simpler infection-control measures for overextended ICUs.

What's next: - The research team plans a multicenter randomised trial to confirm the pilot findings. - Further trials are needed to determine whether the observed microbial reduction translates into fewer ICU pneumonia cases. - Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation support for the SMURF pilot is expected to continue driving AIM research and follow-on studies.

The bottom line: - Royal Columbian Hospital’s early ICU data suggest a five-minute nasal treatment could reduce pneumonia risk, but only a larger randomized trial can show whether the benefit holds up in practice. - More information