Process-independent quantitative assessment of residual biological contamination of medical devices reprocessed in washer-disinfectors.
A method based on measuring a soil-induced fluorescence intensity response of 1,8-anilinonaphthalene sulfonate at two fixed wavelengths (460 and 510 nm) was used for determining residual contamination on test soil carriers simulating medical devices after passage through a hospital washer-disinfector. The fluorescence response can be satisfactorily calibrated to soil levels as low as approximately 1 microg/L. Practical tests were performed in two hospitals with washer-disinfectors of 3 types and with several chemical or enzymic cleansers-disinfectants. In combination with the previously developed system of standardized test soil carriers simulating both easily and poorly accessible parts of soiled medical devices, the liver-lactose-oil test soil and an efficient sonication procedure for stripping the residual soil off the carriers, this soil detection method permits the detection of very low contamination levels.
Sigler
K
K
Institute of Microbiology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czechia. sigler@biomed.cas.cz
Chládková
K
K
Vacata
V
V
Gebel
J
J
Gásková
D
D
D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control; D004203:Disinfection / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D004866:Equipment Contamination / Q000517:prevention & control*; D017743:Equipment Reuse; D005062:European Union; D006801:Humans; D012987:Soil / Q000032:analysis; D012988:Soil Microbiology
D012987:Soil