A risk assessment of multiple use of an aerosol system compared with single use for lung ventilation scans.
Over 300 99Tc(m)-DTPA aerosol lung ventilation scans are performed at Leicester Royal Infirmary each year. Current practice is to re-use the nebulizer circuits up to five times over a maximum of 1 week. Following a visit from the hospital infection control team, this practice was questioned and, therefore, a risk assessment was carried out. This compared the risks of multiple use of ventilation circuits with single use. A survey was also carried out to try and establish current practice in other departments. The risk assesment showed that both single and multiple use of nebulizer circuits can have a high risk. The risks associated with the former were radiation safety and/or financial, and the risk with the latter was cross-infection. The survey showed that multiple use is certainly common practice within the UK. Therefore, in coming to a decision on which practice to adopt, these risks must be considered most carefully in the context of the local environment.
Belton
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Leicestershire Medical Physics Department, Leicester Royal Infirmary NHS Trust, Infirmary Close, UK.
Burford
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Early
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D000336:Aerosols; D006786:Hospitals, Urban; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D010564:Personnel, Hospital; D011356:Product Labeling; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D011786:Quality Control; D011834:Radiation Monitoring / Q000592:standards; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012955:Societies, Medical; D016284:Technetium Tc 99m Pentetate / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006113:United Kingdom; D014691:Ventilation; D014692:Ventilation-Perfusion Ratio
D000336:Aerosols; D016284:Technetium Tc 99m Pentetate