Disinfection of fabrics and carpets artificially contaminated with calicivirus: relevance in institutional and healthcare centres.

The study evaluated five disinfectants against feline calicivirus (FCV) on various fabrics or carpets. Metricide, an activated dialdehyde-based product, was found to be the most effective disinfectant on all types of fabric and carpet, inactivating more than 99.99% of the virus in 1-10 minutes. In general, effectiveness of disinfectants increased with an increase in exposure time from 1-10 minutes. The disinfection of carpets was more difficult than the disinfection of fabrics; 100% polyester was the least amenable to disinfection. Only Metricide and Microbac-II (a phenolic compound) were able to inactivate 99% of FCV on 100% polyester. Journal of Hospital Infection 2006;63:205-10.