New data published this month in the New England Journal of Medicine brought good news for US healthcare: patients in 2023 were 27% less likely to pick up a healthcare-associated infection (HAI) than patients in 2015. The CDC’s national survey, covered by the American Hospital Association on July 17, found roughly 1 in 38 patients had at least one HAI in 2023, down from 1 in 31 in 2015 — with sharp declines in central line-associated bloodstream infections, catheter-associated urinary tract infections, and C. difficile.
It’s a real win for infection prevention teams. But buried in the same report is a number that deserves more attention: 61% of all HAIs recorded were not linked to a device or procedure at all. Pneumonia, surgical-site infections, and gastrointestinal infections — the most common HAIs in the data — are frequently tied to something much harder to control with a checklist: what happens on hospital surfaces between cleanings.
Why Device Bundles Worked — and Surfaces Are the Next Frontier
The last decade of HAI reduction has been driven largely by standardized “bundles”: strict protocols for inserting and maintaining catheters and central lines. Those bundles work because they target a specific, controllable moment of risk.
Environmental surface contamination is a different problem. A surface can be disinfected thoroughly at 8am and be re-contaminated by the first touch, cough, or airflow that follows. Standard disinfection only acts at the moment it’s applied — it has no way to keep working after the cleaning cart leaves the room. For non-device HAIs, that gap between cleanings is exactly where transmission tends to happen.
Where a Residual Layer Fits
This is the specific problem VireXbuster Spray was built to address — not as a replacement for hospital disinfection protocols, but as a supplemental layer underneath them. It’s a hybrid formulation with a very wide spectrum of activity against viruses, bacteria, fungi, mould, and mildew, applied to existing surfaces (high-touch metals, plastics, and other hard or soft substrates) to provide protection that continues working for up to 12 months per application, not just at the moment of cleaning.
Important distinction: VireXbuster is not marketed or classified as a disinfectant. In the US, this category of product is defined by the EPA as a Supplemental Residual Antimicrobial Product — a designation that reflects exactly the role described above: it supplements existing disinfection routines rather than replacing them. VireXbuster is BAuA approved, Fraunhofer tested, QualityLabs certified as antimicrobial, and Dermatest certified “Excellent” for dermatological safety.
What This Means for Facility and Infection Control Teams
If your HAI numbers have plateaued despite solid device-bundle compliance, the CDC data suggests looking at what’s happening to surfaces in the hours between cleanings — nurse stations, bed rails, door handles, waiting areas, equipment carts. A residual antimicrobial coating doesn’t change your cleaning protocol; it changes what’s true about the surface in the gaps your protocol can’t cover.
The same logic extends beyond hospitals — transport, offices, and public spaces all face the same “clean now, re-contaminated soon” problem. Full product details are available at the VireXbuster shop.
FAQ
Is VireXbuster Spray a disinfectant?
No. It is not classified or marketed as a disinfectant and is not EPA-registered. In the US, the EPA defines this product category as a Supplemental Residual Antimicrobial Product — meant to work alongside standard disinfection, not replace it.
How long does one application of VireXbuster Spray last?
Protection can last up to 12 months per application, depending on the surface and environment, providing continuous supplemental activity between routine cleanings.
What is VireXbuster Spray certified for?
It is BAuA approved, Fraunhofer tested, QualityLabs certified as antimicrobial, and Dermatest certified “Excellent” for dermatological safety.
