12,530 research outputs found
Diathermy smoke: a risk to perioperative practitioners?
The use of diathermy as a cautery
device is common practice in
perioperative environment, however
issues relating to the health
and safety of the smoke produced through
the vaporisation of tissue may still not be
recognised by practitioners. This is despite
the use of diathermy dating back to the
late 19th century (Pollack et al, 2000).
Concerns have been expressed about the
components of diathermy smoke (Health
and Safety Executive (HSE), 2012), which
contains 95% water and 5% cellular debris
(Ulmer 2008), including a magnitude of
different chemicals, some of which may
have mutagenic and carcinogenic potential
similar to that of cigarette smoke (Ortolano
et al, 2009)
Diathermy smoke: hazardous to health?
The heat used in electrocautery causes cells to boil and explode, or simply
dry up, producing a gaseous by-product known as diathermy smoke.
This smoke may have mutagenic and carcinogenic potential, similar to
that of cigarette smoke (Spearman et al, 2007). A search of electronic
databases was performed and selected articles were reviewed using the
Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) tool to enable a review of
relevant material to be undertaken. The findings of the review identified 45
compounds, 9 of these were found to be hazardous when cross referenced
against the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) list of
approved workplace exposure limits (Health and Safety Executive (HSE),
2011) and 4 were carcinogens. This research indicates that the use of an
extraction device to remove smoke when using diathermy is best practice.
However, until more conclusive evidence is available on the actual health
risks of diathermy smoke, as opposed to the potential health risks, it will be
difficult for organisations that govern health and safety at work to create
legislation on the need to extract it from the operating theatre air
The British host: just how welcoming are we?
Successive studies of the international student experience have documented a lack of contact between host and visitor despite its value for language and cultural learning as well as satisfaction with the stay. In spite of the rise in international education, there is a lack of literature on the domestic student perspective. This article redresses the balance somewhat and reports on findings from a qualitative study of British student attitudes to the presence in large numbers of international students on their programme of postgraduate study. Contrary to previous research findings, domestic students are revealed to be empathetic, flexible and open to new cultures. This mindset was attributed by participants to their desire to work in an international industry. Nevertheless, a phenomenon of segregation is observed in both the home and international student communities, suggesting that cultural identification is the response to cultural diversity
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