Home Articles Downloads Forum Products Services EBME Expo Contact
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Rate Thread
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 375
Likes: 11
Neoteny Offline OP
Sage
OP Offline
Sage
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 375
Likes: 11
Good morning

Has anyone noticed the microcracks appearing on the Cadd Solis pain pump lock boxes?

Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 50
Likes: 27
Alf Offline
Scholar
Offline
Scholar
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 50
Likes: 27
ESC (Environmental Stress Cracking) due to disinfectants is more common than imagined - Its the nature of disinfectants I'm afraid. It is the reason we use a protective maintenance spray, to prevent damage from cleaning & disinfection media.
Summary
Background
Surface cleaning and disinfection is a key part of breaking the chain of transmission and reducing the risk of healthcare associated infections. However, if cleaning and disinfectant formulations are incompatible with surface materials, frequent application can cause premature failure of plastics due to environmental stress cracking (ESC). Material compatibility should be considered when selecting cleaning and disinfecting products.
Aim
This study evaluated the tendency of 2-in-1 wet wipes to cause ESC in commonly found healthcare plastics.
Methods
Eight ready-to-use 2-in-1 wet wipes were evaluated for their ability to cause ESC in 13 plastic surfaces in accordance with BS EN ISO-22088-3. Polymers were exposed to fluid extracted from wipes at a fixed strain of 0.5% for seven days and assessed for cracking, crazing, and tensile strength in accordance with ISO 527–2:2012.
Findings
All 2-in-1 wet wipes tested contained ESC agents, although the severity of ESC varied. Products with higher pH (>8.0) were responsible for 74% of failures, with 22 of the 39 tested plastics visibly cracking. Although the primary active in all tested wipe formulations were quaternary ammonium compounds, formulations that included small/medium amines or alcohol demonstrated a greater propensity for plastic cracking.
Conclusion
Each disinfectant formulation exhibits a unique spectrum of microbial efficacy and unique potential to cause surface damage. This may result in device failures and recalls that could compromise patient and staff safety. BS EN ISO-22088-3 can support material compatibility assessments of disinfectant and detergent products before they come to market.



Darren Magee
Assistant Director Medical Physics & Clinical Engineering
Epsom & St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

Moderated by  DaveC in Oz, RoJo 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Who's Online Now
3 members (colin smith, daisizhou, GlynEd), 199 guests, and 25 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Newest Members
Argbiomed, Adrian Nicholls, wael mansour, Carla, Roger NPTH
10,238 Registered Users
Forum Statistics
Forums25
Topics11,134
Posts74,073
Members10,238
Most Online5,980
Jan 29th, 2020
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5