Photomedicine and Photobiology Unit, Department of Dermatology, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, USA.
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.
Photochem Photobiol Sci. 2020 Jun;19(6):746-751. doi: 10.1039/d0pp00131g. Epub 2020 Oct 27.
During global health emergencies such as the current COVID-19 pandemic, the decontamination of single-use personal protective equipment (PPE) becomes a necessary means to keep up with the growing demand from healthcare workers and patients alike. Many unverified methods are being considered, which can pose the risk of incomplete decontamination and lead to catastrophic results. Several factors come into play when determining the suitability of such methods including the quality of the decontamination technique, the targeted pathogen, cost, ease of installation and use, rate of sterilization, and the surface or material to be sterilized. The germicidal properties of ultraviolet-C are well known. This review will cover the most commonly described methods for the sterilization of N95 respirators, namely, ultraviolet germicidal irradiation, hydrogen peroxide vaporization, microwave-generated steaming, and dry heating. These techniques have been tested previously and have demonstrated efficacy in reducing or inactivating viral and bacterial pathogens, although testing against SARS-CoV-2 specifically has not been done. Moreover, it must be emphasized that proper disposal after a single use is still ideal under normal circumstances.
在全球卫生紧急情况(如当前的 COVID-19 大流行)期间,对一次性个人防护设备 (PPE) 进行消毒成为满足医护人员和患者日益增长需求的必要手段。目前正在考虑许多未经证实的方法,但这些方法可能存在消毒不彻底的风险,从而导致灾难性后果。在确定这些方法的适用性时,有几个因素需要考虑,包括消毒技术的质量、目标病原体、成本、安装和使用的便利性、灭菌速度以及要消毒的表面或材料。紫外线-C 的杀菌性能是众所周知的。本综述将涵盖最常用于 N95 呼吸器消毒的方法,即紫外线杀菌照射、过氧化氢汽化、微波产生的蒸汽和干热。这些技术以前已经过测试,已证明它们在减少或灭活病毒和细菌病原体方面具有功效,尽管尚未针对 SARS-CoV-2 进行专门测试。此外,必须强调的是,在正常情况下,一次性使用后进行适当处理仍然是理想的。