The first Sterillium® bottle left BODE Chemie’s German plant in Hamburg-Stellingen on 4 June 1965. Back then, hardly anyone could imagine the product’s triumphal success within such a short time and that its name would become synonymous with hand disinfection.
The Sterillium® Brand
Sterillium® – the development of a market leader
![Sterillium](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-produkte-3x.jpg?h=315&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=6ae237633b4341d5b3eb2f84bac94ad7&hash=835858BC23B1EBDDAC66D5A0C233D3EE)
Based on this competitive advantage, BODE has leveraged the expertise gained to develop a sophisticated product portfolio, which is tailored to different hand disinfection needs, and ranges from the still-modern skin-friendly classic Sterillium®, the colourant and fragrance-free Sterillium® classic pure and the extensively active Sterillium® med to the extremely powerful, virucidal Sterillium® Virugard.
![Hand Disinfection](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-haendedesinfektion.jpg?h=322&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=0dfcdb101dff4c07a4df725dd74ba633&hash=DF22F0278F4F3825905EDB614814BB10)
The story of a high-performance product:
Read the story of how it all began:
In the early 1960s, medicine – particularly heart surgery – gained new heights. With cardiac pacemakers and the first heart transplantation, the discipline moved on rapidly. However, at that time, the hygienic conditions in hospitals left much to be desired: nosocomial pathogens resistant to antibiotics and surgical site infections dominated daily routine in clinics and cast a shadow over the innovative surgery methods.
![hygienic conditions in hospitals](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-krankenhaus.jpg?h=319&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=d253be6df32d42ee9216e3d3ad263612&hash=02E28D27B7DBE01078019832B7BF1B93)
![handwash procedure](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-haende-waschen.jpg?h=318&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=2638ea4169a84b5981fae457142186ba&hash=0A5FCC6E43C6C8CA000E9F460FF32618)
On ward rounds, healthcare staff often even skipped the cumbersome handwash procedure due to time constraints. The alternative: in front of each patient room, there was a large bowl with formaldyhyde-based solution, in which the personnel washed hands before treating the next patient.
Out of curiosity, heart surgeon Dr. Peter Kalmár from the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) in Germany carried out a microbiological examination of such a used solution. The result was stunning – the solution contained countless pathogenic bacterial species. A major threat to patients and staff.
![Dr. Peter Kalmar](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-dr-peter-kalmar.jpg?h=319&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=3c729398e3714125aab7594093f7d8f2&hash=6AA8D4FEF4740CB1C25582FFEB9DD611)
![Escherichia-coli](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-escherichia-coli.jpg?h=330&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=71bdc377eddc47a3b45949e71eb827eb&hash=18488EE93CEA518D285EA3BAD9287D36)
Kalmár knew from daily routine which criteria a new hand disinfection product needed to fulfil: rapid effect, long-lasting and a broad spectrum of activity against the skin’s own and foreign pathogens, and skin friendliness.
For the implementation of his ideas, the physician relied on the expertise of Bacillolfabrik Dr. Bode & Co. in Hamburg, which had often collaborated with the hospital successfully already. And so the scientists from Dr. Bode & Co. and the physicians of the UKE began their extensive research for a suitable preparation.
![Bacillolfabrik Dr. Bode & Co.](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-bacillol-fabrik-bode-co.jpg?h=318&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=59cdb1cdf7084718b5e32d961e1630c9&hash=D5AD1E3CC715A8608995B32C0F224440)
![Sterillium®](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-pipette.jpg?h=329&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=e242b4189d5849be8022217e46086956&hash=965B2D7FFAD6BD8CCD45AEFFC5B19782)
It was soon evident that only alcohol possessed the necessary spectrum of activity and had no toxic effects on the human body. Only its skin-irritant potential gave rise to problems. Hence, the scientists from Dr. Bode & Co. added skin-nourishing and moisturising substances to avoid skin irritations.
Sterillium® was born. Following extensive bacteriological testing, the first marketable alcohol-based rub-in hand disinfectant was authorised for practical use. In early summer of 1965, the first Sterillium® batch left Bacillolfabrik Dr. Bode & Co. In addition to its broad spectrum of activity and the skin-friendly properties, the new product convinced by its application independent of washbasins.
![In 1965, the first Sterillium® batch left Bacillolfabrik Dr. Bode & Co](/-/media/country/bode-chemie/img/unternehmen/marke-sterillium-anzeige-sterillium.jpg?h=433&iar=0&mw=540&w=434&rev=fe5108cd693b4ce99258944ef0e87ad2&hash=D3F130C144C66DBBEF7F77ADD67C3CA3)