Infection Prevention Glossary
Angle of Incidence
Relative angle at which light is delivered from source to target surface
Bacteria
Germs capable of causing infections in open wounds or large quantity consumption
Bloodborne Disease
Contagious only by exchange of blood or bodily fluids, sometimes mosquito-vectored
Communicable Disease
Contagious by surface transmission, airborne, close contact
Disinfect
To achieve >99.99% bacterial and viral reduction
Distance
Space from the light source to the target surface – larger distances require longer exposure
Dwell Time
Time required for disinfecting agents to remain visibly wet to inactivate potentially lingering germs
Fomite
Inanimate object that transmits disease-causing germs from person to person
Gen 1 System
Vertical and/or stationary UV delivery system, usually corded, does not target any specific surfaces, prone to shadowing and requires prohibitively long treatment times
Line of Sight
Direct exposure from light source to target, objects between light source and target creates shadowed, or unexposed, areas on the target surface
mJ/cm²
Units of UVC dosage delivered
Sanitize
To achieve >99.9% bacterial reduction
Virus
Germs capable of causing infections in otherwise healthy hosts, highly contagious
µW/cm²
Units for rate of UVC dosage delivery