Silver coating of urinary catheters prevents adherence and growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Discs of urinary catheter material were exposed to the flow of artificial urine containing cells of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Within 10 h an adherent biofilm composed of the bacteria and of their exopolysaccharide products had developed on the uncoated catheter material. On the silver-coated catheter material no biofilm of Pseudomonas aeruginosa had developed.