Forced air contamination risk in the OR.

INTRODUCTION

Forced-air warming (FAW) is a commonly used method of patient warming to reduce perioperative hypothermia and minimize associated surgical complications.

OBJECTIVES

The primary objective of this study was to demonstrate even when properly managed, FAW units may contribute to greater environmental bacterial load and infection risk.

METHODS

A study conducted in 2018 revealed that FAW contamination occurs more than expected in the surgical environment. The study demonstrated that 42.5 percent of the 320 samples collected were higher than the minimum accepted pathogen levels.

RESULTS

The present study provided a retrospective-research correlation between samples collected in the 2018 analysis, along with evidence of any associated Surgical Site Infections (SSIs).

CONCLUSION

In a retrospective study of these cases, 3.4 percent of OB/GYN, 5.6 percent of colon cases, 1.4 percent of GI cases, and 5.3 percent of amputation cases developed an SSI. The results indicate that when FAW is in use, the risk for SSI is present.