Forced air contamination risk in the OR

Area of Science:

• Healthcare-associated infections
• Environmental microbiology
• Surgical patient safety

Background:

• Forced-air warming (FAW) is a standard method for preventing hypothermia during surgery.
• Despite its benefits, FAW units may inadvertently increase bacterial load in the surgical environment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the association between FAW use and environmental bacterial contamination.
• To determine the correlation between FAW-related contamination and the incidence of surgical site infections (SSIs).

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis correlating data from a 2018 study on FAW contamination with subsequent SSI occurrences.
• Evaluation of bacterial levels in surgical environments where FAW was employed.

Main Results:

• A 2018 study found that 42.5% of samples from FAW units exceeded acceptable pathogen levels.
• The retrospective analysis linked FAW use to SSIs across various surgical types, including OB/GYN (3.4%), colon (5.6%), GI (1.4%), and amputation (5.3%).

Conclusions:

• Forced-air warming units can contribute to environmental bacterial contamination.
• The presence of FAW is associated with an increased risk of developing surgical site infections.