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The Environmental Protection Agency is warning residents who live near medical sterilizing plants in 13 states and Puerto Rico about potential health risks from emissions of ethylene oxide, a ...
The disinfectant effect of ethylene oxide is similar to that of sterilization by heat, but because of limited penetration, it affects only the surface. ETO sterilization can take up to 12 hours due to its slow action upon microorganisms, and lengthy processing and aeration time. [128]
In medical sterilization, hydrogen peroxide is used at higher concentrations, ranging from around 35% up to 90%. The biggest advantage of hydrogen peroxide as a sterilant is the short cycle time. Whereas the cycle time for ethylene oxide may be 10 to 15 hours, some modern hydrogen peroxide sterilizers have a cycle time as short as 28 minutes. [44]
The odor threshold for these gases is above the PELs and for ethylene oxide it is 500 ppm, approaching that of the IDLH. [1] Odor is thus inadequate as a monitoring technique. Continuous gas monitors are used as part of an overall safety program to provide a prompt alert to nearby workers in the event that there is a leak of the sterilant gas ...
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The US National Toxicology Program has labeled ethylene oxide as a definite human and animal carcinogen. A study done by the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, including 7,576 women, found a direct correlation between breast cancer rates and exposure to ethylene oxide during medical sterilization processes.
Sterilization can also be achieved using ethylene oxide (ETO) gas. This process was created in the 1950s by the US military [4] and is used on items that cannot withstand the high temperatures of steam sterilization. ETO sterilization takes far longer than steam sterilization and is hazardous to workers, so alternative methods were created in ...
If nothing will grow, then the spores were destroyed and the sterilization was successful. [18] In hospitals, endospores on delicate invasive instruments such as endoscopes are killed by low-temperature, and non-corrosive, ethylene oxide sterilizers. Ethylene oxide is the only low-temperature sterilant to stop outbreaks on these instruments. [19]