Infection Control
Sterilizer Chamber Cleaning Service
February 27, 2013 10:32 am | by Spectrum Surgical Instruments / STERIS Specialty Services | Product Releases | CommentsExperience the Power of Clean with Sterilizer Chamber Cleaning Service from Spectrum Surgical Instruments / STERIS Specialty Services. AORN recommends regular chamber cleaning in its equipment maintenance supplement to ensure your sterilizer continues to perform to your expectations.
Non-Latex Antimicrobial Surgical Glove
February 26, 2013 9:53 am | by Ansell | Product Releases | CommentsAnsell launched the GAMMEX Non-Latex Antimicrobial surgical glove, a new to the world medical device, in the Canadian market. This glove combines allergy and antimicrobial protection for healthcare workers in Canada, especially in the case of intraoperative glove breaches.
Antibacterial Envelope
February 22, 2013 11:03 am | by TYRX | TYRX, Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsTYRX’s AIGISRx Antibacterial Envelope is a polypropylene mesh pouch/sleeve specifically designed to aid in the stabilization of Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices (CIEDs), such as pacemakers or defibrillators (ICDs), as well as to help prevent surgical site infections associated with CIEDs.
Kinect Game Controller Could Cut Healthcare Costs
February 13, 2013 11:54 am | News | CommentsThe Microsoft Kinect game controller could cut U.S. healthcare costs by up to $30 billion by allowing providers to interact with patients remotely, reducing the number of hospital visits and the associated risk of infection.
Educational Hand Hygiene Packaging
February 13, 2013 9:40 am | by PDI | Product Releases | CommentsPDI, owner of Sani-Hands Instant Hand Sanitizing wipes, announces the launch of new educational packaging to help aid in hand hygiene for patients and education at the bedside. Four educational “when to use” icons have been added to the Sani-Hands Bedside Pack to help healthcare staff communicate critical opportunities for patients to practice hand hygiene.
Duo 400
February 6, 2013 10:13 am | by MecWash Systems | Product Releases | CommentsMecWash Systems introduces the Duo 400 – a compact, fully automatic and self-contained aqueous cleaning system that meets the highest “visually clean and dry” cleanliness and inspection standards. This highly versatile single chamber rotational cleaning system features immersion/spray wash, spray rinse, and hot air dry.
Count Sheet Holders
February 4, 2013 10:32 am | by Healthmark Industries | Healthmark Industries Company, Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsHealthmark Industries offers a complete line of count sheet holders. They are designed to hold instrument count sheets on the outside of wrapped trays and closed containers.
Study May Lead To Treatments For All MRSA Strains
February 1, 2013 1:00 pm | News | CommentsA new strain of MRSA has emerged that can spread beyond hospital walls, putting everyone at risk. This particular strain of MRSA – known as USA300 – contains a chunk of genes not shared by any other strains, though it is unclear how this unique genetic material enables the bacteria to survive and persist in the community. Now, research has pinpointed a gene that causes the infection to linger on the skin longer than other strains, allowing it to be passed more readily from one person to the next.
Tiburon Surgical Drapes
January 30, 2013 10:31 am | by Cardinal Health | Cardinal Health | Product Releases | CommentsTiburon Surgical Drapes are designed to provide maximum clinician and patient safety with classification as a Level 4 device under the AAMI guidelines for barrier performance, strike-through barrier technology for impervious strength, and an absorbent top layer to help control fluid.
Dedicated Wound Care Training Center Opens In Jacksonville
January 25, 2013 11:09 am | News | CommentsMore than 2,000 physicians, nurses and other medical and clinical technicians from around the country are anticipated to be trained in 50 events this year in specialized wound care treatment and disease management.
Another Insulin Pen Infection At NY Hospital
January 25, 2013 10:57 am | News | CommentsA second western New York hospital is notifying patients that they may have been exposed to HIV, hepatitis B or hepatitis C through the improper sharing of insulin pens. Olean General Hospital was mailing letters to 1,915 patients, advising them to call to arrange for blood testing. The risk of infection is very low, hospital officials said, but they wanted patients to be aware of the possibility.
Quadruple Amputee Undergoes Hand Transplant Surgery
January 24, 2013 12:30 pm | Videos | CommentsFour months after the dramatic surgery, a young woman can pick up small objects. Nine months post-op she is flexing her wrists and fingers, sensing hot and cold, but the use of steriods to help prevent rejection has resulted in a 40-lb. weight gain.
Retained Objects Costly For Patients And Surgeons
January 18, 2013 10:41 am | News | CommentsA lawyer in Germany claims surgeons left up to 16 objects in her client's body after an operation for prostate cancer. She is seeking over $100,000, plus costs for the family of the patient, who has since died. According to Loyola University in Chicago, some 1,500 patients in the United States have surgical objects accidentally left inside them after surgery each year.
Experts Critical Of Infection Surveillance System
January 16, 2013 11:46 am | News | CommentsPatients recovering from surgery get infections far more often than is being reported, a new study led by De Montfort University has found. Infection prevention specialists are now calling on the Department of Health to bring in a clear and standardised system for hospitals to try to identify the true scale of surgical infections.
Site Infections May Increase Blood Clots After Colorectal Surgery
January 16, 2013 11:35 am | News | CommentsThe research, described in a report published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, found that patients who experience a surgical-site infection after their abdominal surgery are four times more likely than infection-free patients to develop a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in the legs, or its more deadly cousin, a pulmonary embolism (PE) in the lungs.
Hospitals Crack Down On Workers Refusing Flu Shots
January 15, 2013 1:02 pm | by Lindsey Tanner, AP | News | CommentsPatients can refuse a flu shot. Should doctors and nurses have that right, too? That is the thorny question surfacing as U.S. hospitals increasingly crack down on employees who won't get flu shots, with some workers losing their jobs over their refusal.
Using Hand Gestures To Manipulate MRI Images In The OR
January 11, 2013 1:00 pm | News | CommentsSurgeons routinely need to review medical images and records during surgery, but stepping away from the operating table and touching a keyboard and mouse can delay the procedure and increase the risk of spreading infection.
Grippy Surgical Absorbent Mat
January 7, 2013 9:58 am | by New Pig Corporation | New Pig Corporation | Product Releases | CommentsNew Pig Corporation introduces the Grippy Surgical Absorbent Mat with an adhesive bottom. It absorbs and retains up to three liters of liquid to help keep the OR floor clean and safe.
Techniques Could Harness Patients' Immune Cells To Fight Disease
January 4, 2013 1:26 pm | News | CommentsResearchers reporting in two separate papers used stem cell technology to successfully regenerate patients' immune cells, creating large numbers that were long-lived and could recognize their specified targets: HIV-infected cells in one case and cancer cells in the other. The findings could help in the development of strategies to rejuvenate patients' exhausted immune responses.
Ultrasonic Cleaning System
January 4, 2013 10:30 am | by L&R Manufacturing Co. | Product Releases | CommentsL&R Manufacturing Co. offers the Effica E1 Ultrasonic cleaning system. According to the company, it has a molded design that offers quiet operation. The design allows for greater ultrasonic energy flow and the draining system offers 65 percent faster draining than the previous model.
Antibacterial Envelope
January 4, 2013 10:18 am | by TYRX | TYRX, Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsTYRX’s AIGISRx® Antibacterial Envelope is a polypropylene mesh pouch/sleeve specifically designed to aid in the stabilization of Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices (CIEDs), such as pacemakers or defibrillators (ICDs), as well as to help prevent surgical site infections associated with CIEDs.
Hydrogen Peroxide Vapors Help Fight Superbugs
January 2, 2013 12:34 pm | News | CommentsInfection control experts at The Johns Hopkins Hospital have found that a combination of robot-like devices that disperse a bleaching agent into the air and then detoxify the disinfecting chemical are highly effective at killing and preventing the spread of multiple-drug-resistant bacteria, or so-called hospital superbugs.
Mini Hype-Wipe Bleach Towelettes
January 2, 2013 10:27 am | by Current Technologies | Product Releases | CommentsCurrent Technologies offers the Mini Hype-Wipe bleach towelettes. They have rapid kill times, including a one- minute kill time for TB, Strep, Salmonella, Pseudomonas, Norovirus, RSV, H1N1, ESBL, CRKP, Rotavirus, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and a two-minute kill time for MRSA, VRE, and Staph.
Concentrated Instrument Cleaning Formulations
December 21, 2012 10:46 am | by Steris | Steris Corporation | Product Releases | CommentsSTERIS offers Prolystica 2X concentrated instrument cleaning formulations, which are proven solutions for manual cleaning and for automated washing systems. Prolystica 2X products are flexible, fast-acting formulations for all cleaning needs.
Dogs Sniffing Out Superbugs
December 14, 2012 12:58 pm | News | CommentsA two-year old male beagle (called Cliff) was trained to identify C. difficile in stool samples and in patients with C. difficile infection. He was taught to indicate the presence of the specific scent by sitting or lying down. The dog's detection abilities were formally tested, and he correctly identified all 50 positive samples and 47 out of 50 negative samples.
