Source strengths obtained with three clean air suits fulfilling the requirements for high performance in EN 13795-2:2019: An experimental study

Introduction: Clothing made from tight material worn by operating room staff adds to the effect achieved by ventilation in the effort to keep a low level of bacteria in the operating room air. The material used for clean air suits should be tested according to the standard EN 13795-2. Aim: The aim of the study was to investigate whether there was a difference in protective capacity between three clean air suits made from materials fulfilling the requirements of EN 13795-2:2019 and designed as described in Annex E of the standard. Materials and methods: Eight people (five men and three women) performed standardized movements in a dispersal chamber with a fixed supply air flow. Each person performed two test cycles with each clean air suit. Counts of colony-forming units (CFU) in the air were measured during testing and source strength was calculated for each test cycle. Results: The mean values of source strength for the three clean air suits were 1.4 CFU/s, 0.8 CFU/s and 0.7 CFU/s. The difference between the most and the least protective garment was statistically significant (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Clean air suits made from material fulfilling the requirements for ‘high performance’ in the standard EN 13795-2:2019 might show a significant difference in protective capacity when comparing source strength. Tests for measuring of source strength in a dispersal chamber can be performed as suggested in Annex E of the standard, i.e. ‘The test person is male, 20–50 years old, with no visible skin disorder’

Improving Appropriate Use of Antifungal Medications: The Role of an Over-the-Counter Vaginal pH Self-Test Device

Objectives: To determine whether patients can understand and use the vaginal pH device in the diagnosis of vaginitis. To compare whether vaginal pH readings determined by patients and healthcare providers are similar. To determine whether vaginalpHcan reduce inappropriate over-the-counter (OTC) antifungal medication use and improve the correct diagnosis of vaginitis. Methods: One hundred and fifty-one women indicated their belief about the cause of their vaginal infection, read the instructions of the vaginal pH device package insert, used the device and interpreted the findings. The patient interpretations were compared with results obtained by healthcare providers, blinded to patient findings. Results: Over 96% of patients stated that they could easily read the instructions, use the vaginal pH device and interpret the readings. They obtained the same readings as healthcare professionals (Kappa = 0.9). Restricting the use of OTC antifungal medications to those individuals with vaginitis symptoms and vaginal pH ≤ 4.5 significantly reduced inappropriate use by approximately 50%, Fisher's exact test,p-value = 0.018. Conversely, seeking healthcare provider assessment with vaginal pH > 4.5, leads to correct diagnosis of vaginitis. Conclusions: The vaginal pH device can be used as an OTC diagnostic tool by consumers when a vaginal infection is suspected. Vaginal pH readings would direct patients whether to purchase an antifungal medication or seek professional diagnosis from a healthcare provider. Understanding and use of this vaginal pH device could reduce inappropriate use of OTC antifungal medications by approximately 50% and improve the correct diagnosis of vaginitis

Performance of single-use surgical clothing systems during ongoing surgery

To prevent surgical site infection it is desirable to keep the number of airborne-carrying particles low in the operating room during surgery susceptible to infections. As the airborne bacteria are mainly derived from the skin flora of the personnel present in the operating room a reduction can be achieved by using surgical clothing systems with high filtration efficacy. This study will discuss the performance of single-use clothing systems made of polypropylene in the context of operating room during surgical procedures. A comparison between the single-use clothing system and the commonly used reusable clothing systems mad of mixed material (cotton/polyester) is discussed. The results show that the protection efficacy of the tested single-use clothing system is much higher than that of the compared clothing system made of mixed material

Performance of Olefin surgical clothing systems in a dispersal chamber

Today, clothing systems for cleanrooms and associated controlled environments such as ultra clean air operating rooms are mainly tested with regard to material properties, such as particle generation, particle filtration, resistance to wear and comfort. The dispersal chamber or body-box has been used for studying the protective efficacy of clothing systems in use. A modified dispersal chamber has been installed at Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg. Tests have been performed in the dispersal chamber on two Olefin surgical clothing systems with textile hoods, one system with shoes and the other system with textile knee-length boots over the shoes.The results show clearly that the clothing systems with textile knee-length boots has better protection efficacy than that without knee-length boots

Performance of Olefin surgical clothing systems in a dispersal chamber

Today, clothing systems for cleanrooms and associated controlled environments such as ultra clean air operating rooms are mainly tested with regard to material properties, such as particle generation, particle filtration, resistance to wear and comfort. The dispersal chamber or body-box has been used for studying the protective efficacy of clothing systems in use. A modified dispersal chamber has been installed at Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg. Tests have been performed in the dispersal chamber on two Olefin surgical clothing systems with textile hoods, one system with shoes and the other system with textile knee-length boots over the shoes.The results show clearly that the clothing systems with textile knee-length boots has better protection efficacy than that without knee-length boots