Anesthesia breathing circuits protected by the DAR Barrierbac S® breathing filter have a low bacterial contamination rate

Abstract

P Pu ur rp po os se e: : In order to reuse the same anesthesia breathing circuit for more than one patient, it has been proposed to add a breathing filter between the Y-piece and the artificial airway. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the in vivo bacterial filtration efficacy of an anesthesia filter in a usual clinical anesthesia setting.

Microbiological safety and cost-effectiveness of weekly breathing circuit changes in combination with heat moisture exchange filters: a prospective longitudinal clinical survey

“…Our study confirmed previous findings from other authors that a HMEF effectively protects the BCS and from microbial contamination, thus allowing to use the BCS over 7 days on multiple patients [2], [4], [13], [14], [15], [16], [17]. All samples obtained from the ventilators and the condensation water yielded no growth.…”

“…While the HMEF is intended for single use only, BCS can either be single used or reused. The filtration efficacy and safety of HMEF are well studied [1], [2], [3], however, there is still limited clinical evidence on the optimal duration for prolonged BCS usage when used for more than 24 hours in operating room settings [4], [5], [6], [7], [8]. Existing recommendations differ, e.g.…”

Can breathing circuit filters help prevent the spread of influenza A (H1N1) virus from intubated patients?

“…In addition, the test rig was constructed to produce very small virus aerosol droplets. The short duration of the exposure period was considered adequate because earlier studies had shown that filtration efficiency does not diminish for at least 24 hours [14], [15], [16], [17]. The filtration efficiency of mechanical filters actually tends to increase over time as the substances retained on the filter form a layer (“filter cake”), which gradually increases particle retention.…”

Critical Issues in Reprocessing Single-Use Medical Devices for Interventional Cardiology

“…These conflicting results were apparent for anaesthesia devices (Daggan et al, 1999;Lipp et al, 2000), airways devices (Vezina et al, 2001), and disposable plastic trocars (Chan et al, 2000;Roth et al, 2002). The reprocessing and reuse of sphincterotome devices was considered safe and effective with proper reprocessing standards (Kozarek at al., 1999).…”