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Background The hospital environment has got more attention as evidence as source for bacterial transmission and subsequent hospital-acquired infection increased. Regular cleaning and disinfection have been proposed to lower the risk of infection, in particular for gram-positive bacteria. Auto-disinfecting surfaces would allow to decrease survival of pathogens, while limiting resource to achieve a safe environment in patient rooms. Methods A controlled trial to evaluate the antimicrobial effectiveness of a polyvinyl chloride foil containing an integrated silver-based agent (containing silver ions 2%) on high-touch surfaces in patient rooms. Results The overall log reduction of the mean values was 1.8 log10 CFU, the median 0.5 log10 CFU comparing bioburden of control vs antimicrobial foil (p Conclusions A foil containing an integrated silver-based agent applied to high-touch surfaces effectively results in lower recovery of important pathogens from such surfaces over a 6-month study period.