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Front Public Health. 2019 May 22;7:121. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2019.00121. eCollection 2019.
Potential Risk of Virus Carryover by Fabrics of Personal Protective Gowns.
Katoh I1, Tanabe F2, Kasai H2, Moriishi K2, Shimasaki N3, Shinohara K4, Uchida Y5, Koshiba T6, Arakawa S7, Morimoto M8.
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Abstract
Personal protective gowns and coveralls are classified based on barrier efficiency that validates protection from fluid penetration under certain pressures. Materials standardized in this system have been found suitable for emergency medical practices confronting highly contagious diseases. Nevertheless, adhesion of blood, and body fluids from virus-infected patients to the surface of protective clothing still imposes a risk of pathogen transmission in the process of doffing, or undressing. We performed a small-scale experiment to test the possibility of infectious virus carryover on the surface of different fabrics used in commercially available protective gowns. Application of a lentivirus vector that expresses green fluorescent protein allowed easy monitoring of infectious viral loads on fabrics. Results indicate that fabrics of level-3 surgical gowns serve better to reduce virus transmission compared to fabrics of chemical protective clothing with the same or higher barrier efficiency. Analysis of sliding angles provided indexes of fluid repellency, which were inversely related to virus carryover potentials. Droplets of infectious body fluids may easily roll off fabrics with water-repellent finishing. Thus, virus carryover is a measurable risk factor to be considered for better choice of personal protective clothing.
KEYWORDS:
fabric; health care workers; infection; personal protective equipment; sliding angle; surgical gown; virus; water repellency
PMID: 31179258 PMCID: PMC6538680 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2019.00121
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Potential Risk of Virus Carryover by Fabrics of Personal Protective Gowns.
Katoh I1, Tanabe F2, Kasai H2, Moriishi K2, Shimasaki N3, Shinohara K4, Uchida Y5, Koshiba T6, Arakawa S7, Morimoto M8.
Author information
Abstract
Personal protective gowns and coveralls are classified based on barrier efficiency that validates protection from fluid penetration under certain pressures. Materials standardized in this system have been found suitable for emergency medical practices confronting highly contagious diseases. Nevertheless, adhesion of blood, and body fluids from virus-infected patients to the surface of protective clothing still imposes a risk of pathogen transmission in the process of doffing, or undressing. We performed a small-scale experiment to test the possibility of infectious virus carryover on the surface of different fabrics used in commercially available protective gowns. Application of a lentivirus vector that expresses green fluorescent protein allowed easy monitoring of infectious viral loads on fabrics. Results indicate that fabrics of level-3 surgical gowns serve better to reduce virus transmission compared to fabrics of chemical protective clothing with the same or higher barrier efficiency. Analysis of sliding angles provided indexes of fluid repellency, which were inversely related to virus carryover potentials. Droplets of infectious body fluids may easily roll off fabrics with water-repellent finishing. Thus, virus carryover is a measurable risk factor to be considered for better choice of personal protective clothing.
KEYWORDS:
fabric; health care workers; infection; personal protective equipment; sliding angle; surgical gown; virus; water repellency
PMID: 31179258 PMCID: PMC6538680 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2019.00121
Free full text