Impact of Bubble Mattress Characteristics on Undersurface Phototherapy Irradiance.

An observational bench study was conducted to assess impact of different physical characteristics of bubble mattresses on flux of under-surface phototherapy. Other outcomes studied were effect of Ethylene-oxide (EtO) and 2.45% glutaraldehyde treatment, multiple layer of mattress and use of new compared to used mattress on photoirradiance. Highest irradiance was obtained through green mattresses (40 GSM) followed by colourless 40 GSM mattress and 60 GSM mattress. EtO treatment and 2.45% glutaraldehyde treatment didn't lead to any significant reduction of the irradiance. Increasing number of layers led to a significant reduction in irradiance. The irradiance through a new mattress was not statistically different when compared with a used mattress of same GSM. It was concluded that appropriate bubble mattress, chosen on the basis of colour, density, thickness, usage and treatment, can let the desired amount of photo irradiance to pass through them without affecting the effectiveness of it.