Odulair BioContainment Unit exceeds

CDC Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Hospitalized Patients with Known or Suspected Ebola Virus Disease in U.S. Hospitals

 

Cheyenne, WY (November 24, 2014)  Odulair™, LLC today announced the launch of their patent pending modular Ebola Isolation Unit, the world’s only facility that exceeds CDC recommendations by providing all three types of isolation required for containment of Ebola patients plus technology that actively creates a safe haven protective environment for health care workers. This unique Isolation Unit provides recursive protection with numerous increasing layers of isolation like the layers of an onion, as the proximity to the patient or contagion decreases.

 

The isolation required for safe containment of the Ebola virus is unprecedented. The closest epidemic in recent history to require isolation was SARS, where 1,400 isolation rooms were built in Hong Kong alone, none of which meet the requirements for containing the Ebola virus.  Even the most advanced hospitals, including those in the U.S. that have treated Ebola patients, do not include the three types of isolation required to contain the Ebola virus, nor a protective environment for hospital workers.

 

The Ebola virus is known to be transmitted via contact with bodily fluids, contact with airborne particulate epithelial cells, and contact with the virus when suspended in aerosol moisture within the air. Clinical studies performed by the U.S. Army in 1995 (1)  and 2012 (2)  also suggest that in climates cooler and less humid than sub-Saharan Africa, the Ebola virus may exhibit airborne transmission. The patent-pending Odulair Ebola Isolation Unit was designed to address all of these known and potential modes of transmission.

 

The most common mode of human-to-human transmission is through contact with an Ebola patient or their bodily fluids. The virus must eventually reach broken skin or a mucous membrane, which is almost unavoidable because the patient and everything they touch are contaminated with the virus for up to seven weeks. The patent pending Odulair Ebola Isolation Unit utilizes a central decontamination room that provides a safe room to spray or wipe down people and equipment thereby inactivating the virus. The Unit also utilizes a specialized pass-thru autoclave to sterilize both human waste such as urine, feces, and shower water including sweat; and bagged biohazard waste such as clothing, linen, used consumables, needles, and anything contaminated with the Ebola virus eliminating the need for costly biohazard waste transport. The combination of the central decontamination room and the specialized autoclave provide complete isolation of bodily fluids and inactivation of the virus thereby addressing the most common mode of Ebola transmission.

 

As the Ebola patient’s symptoms advance, they suffer massive dehydration causing epithelial cells to flake from their skin and float in the air. A lesser known form of transmission is via inhaling or allowing these microparticles to come in contact with mucous membranes. Although wearing a respirator in the hot zone aids in preventing contact with these epithelial cells, it is not proven 100% effective. The Odulair Ebola Isolation Unit incorporates the highest level of HEPA Type A filtration that is 99.99% effective at eliminating airborne particles down to 0.3 microns in size. Additionally, all isolation room air is treated with germicidal ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which has demonstrated effectiveness at inactivating the Ebola virus. This extra containment step helps to provide a safer environment for health care staff working within the hot zone.

 

Ebola is also known to be transmittable via aerosol particles traveling on moisture from breathing, coughing, and sneezing. In clinical trials conducted by the U.S. Army (1, 2), at temperatures between 22 to 28 degrees Celsius at 35 to 65% humidity, the inhaled aerosolized Ebola virus infected 100% of primate study participants suggesting that under some conditions the virus may be airborne2. The Odulair Ebola Isolation Unit exceeds the patient airborne infection isolation requirements in both the number of complete air exchanges per hour and the level of negative pressurization containment.

 

The Isolation Unit far exceeds the existing level of hospital safety for health care workers by providing a positive pressure protective environment, similar to a surgical theater environment, preventing airborne contaminants and the virus from entering into the medical staff work area. This is the only Ebola Isolation Unit that actively protects the medical staff against known and possible airborne transmission.

 

The Isolation Unit also incorporates the latest technological advances such as the InTouch Health RP-VITA, the world’s only Class II robot medical device enabling high acuity telemedicine care delivery, and remote presence consultations. Another innovation is the use of the InTouch Health robot as a visual “spotter” to help prevent accidental staff contamination. The specialized RP-VITA autonomous robot significantly decreases the requirement of health care workers to enter into the contaminated hot zone by providing automated delivery services for medications, oral rehydration fluids, food, and other supplies. Each of these advances furthers the Odulair mission of actively protecting health care workers from known and possible modes of Ebola virus transmission.

 

“The Odulair Ebola Isolation Unit is the first isolation hospital designed to meet the unprecedented requirements of Ebola containment including bodily fluids, airborne particles, and aerosol and potentially airborne infection isolation that we have encountered in working with our West African colleagues treating Ebola patients,” said Dr. Anita Chambers, President of Odulair, LLC. “This modular facility provides an immediate solution for the world’s leading hospitals as they develop emergency Ebola patient isolation plans. Additionally, the facility provides the ultimate in patient isolation for a variety of highly contagious diseases that we may encounter in the future while also providing active health care worker protection mechanisms. We are excited to add this modular building isolation hospital to our existing product line of Ebola Isolation Units housed in tents and shipping containers,” Chambers said.

 

The Odulair Ebola Isolation Unit can be attached to an existing hospital, or independent as a complete, self-contained Ebola treatment facility. The modular design provides easy scalability to increase the number of patient isolation rooms. The facility can include a power generation system and waste management system meeting all requirements to inactivate the Ebola virus and other highly contagious diseases. The complete facility can be built, delivered, and operational in less than six weeks to meet the immediate need.

 

1.  E. Johnson, N. Jaax, J. White, P. Jahrling. Lethal experimental infections of rhesus monkeys by aerosolized Ebola virus. Int. J. Exp. Path. 1995, 76, 227-236..

 

2. Elizabeth E. Zumbrun, Holly A. Bloomfield, John M. Dye, Ty C. Hunter, Paul A. Dabisch, Nicole L. Garza, Nicholas R. Bramel, Reese J. Baker, Roger D. Williams, Donald K. Nichols, and Aysegul Nalca. A Characterization of Aerosolized Sudan Virus Infection in African Green Monkeys, Cynomolgus Macaques, and Rhesus Macaques. Viruses 2012, 4, 2115-2136; doi:10.3390/v4102115.