Humphreys H, Russell A J, Marshall R J, Ricketts V E, Reeves D S
Department of Medical Microbiology and Infection Control, Southmead Hospital, Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol.
J Hosp Infect. 1991 Nov;19(3):175-80. doi: 10.1016/0195-6701(91)90221-s.
The wearing of disposable head-gear in operating theatres is currently recommended for scrubbed and non-scrubbed staff. However, there is little evidence of its effectiveness as an infection control measure in casual or non-scrubbed theatre staff. The effect of head-gear on bacterial air counts was studied, using six volunteers, in a sealed room, with and without ventilation. Using a Casella slit sampler and a SAS Air Sampler, air counts ranged from 0.08 to greater than 2.9 colony forming units (cfu) m-3. The wearing of head-gear was not associated with a reduction in air counts but counts were lower with ventilation. We recommend that non-scrubbed staff no longer wear head-gear as effective ventilation probably counteracts any possible increased bacterial shedding. Scrubbed staff should continue to wear disposable head-gear because of their proximity to the operative field.
