According to a report from Freedonia, titled "U.S. Infection Prevention Products & Services Market," demand for infection prevention products and services is forecasted to increase 5.1 percent annually to $21.4 billion in 2015. Much of the growth is a result of increased efforts to reduce the amount of hospital acquired infections (HAIs) by implanting stricter standards involving patient and staff hygiene and protection, facility cleaning and disinfection, device and instrument sterilization, and medical waste collection and disposal.

The need for improved infection prevention strategies also extends to the life sciences sector. Stricter FDA standards for product quality control and quality assurance are forcing pharmaceutical and medical device producers to upgrade and expand sterilization and disinfection systems.

Disinfectants consumed by health care and life science facilities will register demand of nearly $2 billion in 2015, up 4.9 percent annually from 2010. Growth will benefit from stepped up pressures on health care facilities to upgrade staff hygiene and facility disinfection practices to defend against HAIs such as MRSA, VRE and C. diff. Disinfectant use in life science facilities will expand as production systems and research and diagnostic investigations become increasingly complex and more vulnerable to microbial contamination.

According to the report, compliance with stricter infection prevention and control safeguards by the health care and life science communities will create average or better growth opportunities for medical waste disposal supplies. And demand for infection prevention services will see above average growth based on the convenience, cost efficiency and regulatory compliance advantages offered to health care and life science facilities.

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