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Electrical hazards incurred when using anti-static anaesthetic hose
Medical Progress Through Technology
|January 1, 1981
Summary
Anaesthetic anti-static rubber tubing poses a hazard due to increased conductivity with heat and autoclaving. Solutions are presented to protect patients from electrical leakage currents while maintaining anti-static properties.
Area of Science:
- Medical device safety
- Biomedical engineering
- Anesthesiology
Background:
- Anaesthetic tubing is used to connect patients to electrical equipment.
- Anti-static properties are crucial for patient safety during anaesthesia.
- Potential hazards exist with the use of certain anaesthetic tubing materials.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify and analyze a potential hazard associated with anaesthetic anti-static rubber elephant tubing.
- To investigate the impact of temperature and autoclaving on tubing conductivity.
- To propose solutions for mitigating electrical leakage current risks.
Main Methods:
- Assessing the conductivity of anaesthetic anti-static rubber elephant tubing.
- Evaluating changes in conductivity under varying temperatures.
- Examining the effects of standard autoclaving procedures on tubing properties.
Main Results:
- Tubing conductivity increases with rising temperatures.
- Autoclaving permanently alters the conductive properties of the tubing.
- The study details the reasons behind these observed changes in conductivity.
Conclusions:
- Anaesthetic anti-static rubber tubing presents a risk due to altered conductivity.
- Two solutions are proposed to ensure patient safety from leakage currents.
- The proposed solutions maintain essential anti-static properties for the anaesthetic gas circuit.