Xenex Disinfection Services has slapped Tru Defense (Tru-D) with a temporary restraining order that prevents its whole room disinfection competitor from making false and misleading statements regarding the efficacy of its mercury bulb product.

Xenex sought the court order when Tru-D claimed its Smart UVC device is capable of disinfecting an entire room from a single position, including shadowed areas. Tru-D has been forced to stop overstating the effectiveness of the Smart UV device and underestimating the effectiveness of Xenex's Germ-Zapping Robot, which uses proprietary pulsed xenon technology to disinfect room surfaces. Xenex says its robot produces intense ultraviolet light (UV) that covers the entire UV light spectrum. It claims that Tru-D's device uses toxic mercury to produce less intense, more narrowly focused UV light.

Xenex also asserts that its technology works faster than Tru-D's device and is the only whole room disinfection option that has been shown in peer-reviewed journals to reduce risk of hospital-acquired infections.

Morris Miller, the CEO of Xenex, says the temporary restraining order will force Tru-D to be more truthful in future advertising. "Tru-D uses false marketing claims in an attempt to convince hospitals that their products have capabilities that do not exist," he adds. "We intend to monitor and react to any false statements."

Chuck Dunn, the CEO and president of Tru-D, says the company's technologically-driven products are based solely on scientific evidence. "The recent claims from competitors are not only damaging, but also unfounded," says Mr. Dunn. "Tru-D is confident in the science behind our device, as validated by numerous clinical trials, and we will vigorously defend statements regarding results that demonstrate Tru-D's clinical differentiation. We look forward to proving the validity of our position in court soon."

Daniel Cook