British Journal of Medicine and Medical Research, ISSN: 2231-0614,Vol.: 10, Issue.: 8

Original-research-article

An Assessment of the Benefit of Surgical Face Masks in Preventing Aerosol Droplet Spread during a Simulated Spinal Anaesthetic-a Blinded in vitro Study

 

Abhijit Biswas^1*, S. Ó. Riain², J. Saunders³, D. Barron⁴ and N. O. Connell⁴

¹Clinical Fellow, Regional Anaesthesia, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, Canada.

²Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, Mid Western Regional Hospital, Limerick, Ireland.

³Statistical Consulting Unit, University of Limerick, Ireland.

⁴Department of Microbiology, Mid Western Regional Hospital, Limerick, Ireland.

Article Information

Editor(s):

(1) Fuhong Su, ICU Laboratory, Erasme Hospital, Free University Brussels, Brussels, Belgium.

Reviewers:

(1) Anonymous, Military Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.

(2) Anonymous, University of Alberta Hospital, Canada.

(3) Jan Jakobsson, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

Complete Peer review History: http://sciencedomain.org/review-history/11149

Aims: The purpose of this study was to assess the benefit of wearing a surgical face mask in reducing aerosol contamination of agar plates in a simulated spinal anaesthetic. The contamination of plates with virulent organisms, association of growth with recent upper respiratory tract infection and food intake were also studied.

Methods: A poster containing written text was fixed to a wall, with a standard agar plate suspended at its midpoint. Each volunteer (n=30) then read the text from the wall chart to simulate verbal interaction with a patient during a spinal anaesthetic, initially wearing a surgical mask and then once again without a mask.

Results: This study revealed an increased risk (p =0.006) of bacterial growth on agar plates when not wearing a surgical face mask. Results also suggest that eating prior to surgical procedures may increase the risk of contamination of the surgical field in the absence of a barrier mask.

Keywords :

Facemasks; oral commensals; meningitis.

Full Article - PDF    Page 1-7

DOI : 10.9734/BJMMR/2015/20265

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