[Intraoperative fires caused by alcoholic skin antiseptic and diathermy]

The authors describe two intraoperative fires during cardiac surgery. In both cases, in addition to the usual disinfection and isolation of the operating field, they wanted to reduce the infection hazard and to restore the partly ruined isolation by 70% alcoholic skin antiseptic solution. Soon after the disinfection, but before the evaporation of alcohol, diathermy was used and caused fire. In case of the first patient the fire spread over the isolation film and resulted second grade (5%) and third-grade (1%) burn injury which required plastic surgery. In the second case the patient's beard caught fire causing second-grade (1%) burn that was treated locally. Despite these burn injuries both patients recovered after the heart surgery. These two intraoperative fires are 0.003-0.004% of all surgical procedures.

Fires during surgery are rare and might have serious consequences. They can be prevented by keeping the discipline of work and instructions of fire protection. The best way of prevention is regular education of all the staff (doctors, nurses, etc.) working in the operating theatre.