ASTM’s E35.15 Committee is responsible for most ASTM antimicrobial test methods. The committee meets twice a year. This meeting was held in early October in New Orleans, Louisiana. Antimicrobial Test Laboratories was present to contribute to test method development. The meeting was productive and well-attended by members of the industry, academia, and regulatory agencies.
Several of the key items discussed at the meeting follow:
- Workgroup created for laundry methods
- EPA conducting C. difficile spore storage study
- Collaborative Quantitative Petri Method for Towelettes (QPM) study planned for early 2015
- Large collaborative efforts to harmonize similar test methods that span several testing associations
- E1428 “Pink Stain” method under heavy review
- Substrates are critical in antimicrobial studies
- Some methods bar certain substrates
- Substrate type influences study outcome
- More clarity is needed for several methods
- Controls should utilize correct substrates
