A method has been presented for evaluating the effectiveness of fabrics treated with antimicrobial agents to resist growth of contaminating organisms. The method consists of direct inoculation of the fabric with suitable test organisms and the subsequent enumeration of growing colonies which develop when the fabric is implanted in a nutrient medium. The method is sensitive, versatile, easy to perform, highly reproducible, and realistically evaluates the practical effectiveness of residual antimicrobial agents on fabrics. Data are given which demonstrate the sensitivity of the method to small differences in antimicrobial concentrations. The versatility of the method is shown by the variety of antimicrobial agents and organisms which have been utilized. Both bacteriostatic and bactericidal activity can be evaluated.
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