Dry heat sterilization as a method to recycle N95 respirator masks: The importance of fit
| Autor: | Sruthi Babu, Kenneth J. Takeuchi, Jeronimo Cello, Esther S. Takeuchi, Glen Itzkowitz, Kenneth R. Shroyer, John G Yuen, Daniel A. Knopf, Amy C. Marschilok, Kim Kisslinger, Chavis A. Stackhouse, Shan Yan, Lei Wang, Peter T. Benziger, David C. Bock, David G. Thanassi |
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| Rok vydání: | 2022 |
| Předmět: |
RNA viruses
Hot Temperature business.product_category Coronaviruses Sanitization Economic shortage Respirators law.invention Medical Conditions law Medicine and Health Sciences Electron Microscopy Public and Occupational Health Respirator Pathology and laboratory medicine Decontamination Filter material Virus Testing Microscopy Multidisciplinary Waste management Human decontamination Medical microbiology Equipment Sterilization Infectious Diseases Equipment and Supplies Process Engineering Dry heat Viruses Engineering and Technology Medicine Scanning Electron Microscopy SARS CoV 2 Pathogens Research Article Biotechnology Heat Treatment Equipment Preparation SARS coronavirus Infectious Disease Control N95 Respirators Health Personnel Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Science Bioengineering Industrial Processes Research and Analysis Methods Microbiology Diagnostic Medicine Industrial Engineering Equipment Reuse Humans Pandemics Filtration Biology and life sciences SARS-CoV-2 Organisms Viral pathogens COVID-19 Microbial pathogens Health Care Manufacturing Processes Autoclaving Health Care Facilities Environmental science Medical Devices and Equipment Preventive Medicine business Dry Heat Sterilization |
| Zdroj: | PLoS ONE, Vol 17, Iss 1, p e0257963 (2022) PLoS ONE PLoS ONE, Vol 17, Iss 1 (2022) |
| ISSN: | 1932-6203 |
| Popis: | In times of crisis, including the current COVID-19 pandemic, the supply chain of filtering facepiece respirators, such as N95 respirators, are disrupted. To combat shortages of N95 respirators, many institutions were forced to decontaminate and reuse respirators. While several reports have evaluated the impact on filtration as a measurement of preservation of respirator function after decontamination, the equally important fact of maintaining proper fit to the users’ face has been understudied. In the current study, we demonstrate the complete inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 and preservation of fit test performance of N95 respirators following treatment with dry heat. We apply scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements, Raman spectroscopy, and contact angle measurements to analyze filter material changes as a consequence of different decontamination treatments. We further compared the integrity of the respirator after autoclaving versus dry heat treatment via quantitative fit testing and found that autoclaving, but not dry heat, causes the fit of the respirator onto the users face to fail, thereby rendering the decontaminated respirator unusable. Our findings highlight the importance to account for both efficacy of disinfection and mask fit when reprocessing respirators to for clinical redeployment. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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