Covergowns and the control of operating room contamination

Area of Science:

• Healthcare-associated infection prevention
• Microbiology
• Surgical safety protocols

Background:

• Operating room (OR) personnel can acquire bacterial contamination from the environment outside the sterile surgical suite.
• Maintaining the sterility of surgical attire is critical for preventing surgical site infections.
• The efficacy of protective garments in preventing scrubsuit contamination requires assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of cotton/polyester covergowns in preventing bacterial contamination of surgical scrubsuits.
• To quantify bacterial load on scrubsuits worn by operating room personnel under different conditions.
• To assess the impact of covergown use on Staphylococcus aureus contamination.

Main Methods:

• Utilized Rodac impression plates to measure bacterial colony counts on surgical scrubsuits.
• Monitored nurses during normal daily operating room routines, including periods outside the sterile environment.
• Compared bacterial contamination levels on scrubsuits with and without covergowns during breaks and after changes.

Main Results:

• Bacterial colony counts on the right shoulder significantly decreased when covergowns were worn over scrubsuits outside the OR.
• Unprotected scrubsuits showed increased colony counts during periods outside the OR and after changes.
• Left thigh samples showed no significant treatment effects but had higher contamination than shoulder samples.
• Staphylococcus aureus contamination was observed in 53% of subjects, with incidence affected similarly to overall bacterial contamination.

Conclusions:

• Cotton/polyester covergowns effectively protect scrubsuits from bacterial contamination on above-waist areas.
• Covergown use is a viable strategy to mitigate bacterial spread from the external environment to surgical attire.
• Adherence to covergown protocols can enhance operating room infection control measures.