ANTIBACTERIAL EFFECT OF LEMONGRASS OIL NANOSILVER SOLUTION ON HOSPITALS FLOOR SURFACE IN QUANG NAM PROVINCE

Abstract

This paper focuses on assessing the effectiveness of antimicrobial activity of nanosiliver lemongrass oil on the floor surfaces of Tropical Hospital, General Hospital and Hospital of Traditional Medicinie in Quang Nam province. The target microorganisms included Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger and Salmonella typhi. In each hospital, samples were taken in five positions (four corners and floor center) of three sick rooms in every 15 minutes. The results showed that the lemongrass oil nanosilver solution was effective in antimicrobial in 30 minutes in all three hospitals. After 15 minutes of floor spraying, the average number of microorganisms (S. aureus, E. coli, C. albican, A. niger, and S. typhi) decreased by 57%, 51%, 64%, 60%, and 56%, respectively, compared to the initial number of microorganisms without floor spraying. After 30 minutes, a slight growth of microorganisms was observed but the antibacterial effect was still acceptable. In conclusions, the lemongrass oil nanosilver solution has the potential in bacterial treatment on the hospital floors, however, further studies are necessary to verify the application of this solution as a cleaning agent on the hospital floors instead of chemicals.
Keywords: Nano silver, lemongrass oil, anti-microbial, hospital floor surface