The video clip below is an excerpt from a nurse education course. It shows the vortex-effect caused by the radiant waste heat from forced-air patient warming (FAW) blankets, similar to what was recently studied and published by orthopedic surgeons A.J. Legg and A.J.Hamer.The Legg and Hamer study, published in the Bone & Joint Journal in March 2013, is [...]
Minneapolis, MN: March 14, 2013— The use of Bair Hugger forced-air warmers during surgery creates convection currents that capture particles below the surgical table, lifting them into the sterile surgical field, according to research recently published by orthopedic surgeons. The waste heat radiating through the surgical drape induced the formation of tornado-like vortexes of rapidly spinning [...]
Studies show that forced-air warming (FAW) reduces soft-tissue surgical infections. How can FAW be linked to increased deep-joint infections? The paradox is easy to explain: BIOFILM. A bacterium that lands on a prosthetic implant can secrete a coating of biofilm that protects it from both antibodies and antibiotics. Bacteria in soft-tissue cannot form effective biofilm coatings. [...]
A study published online ahead of print in Anesthesia & Analgesia concludes that forced-air patient warming produces waste heat that disrupts operating room ventilation airflows over the surgical site, transporting non-sterile air to the area and hindering the ventilation system’s ability to clear potential airborne contaminants. “There are some in our industry that would like [...]
Four independent peer reviewed studies have been published showing that forced-air patient warming devices generate convection currents that disrupt the sterile field. One such study (McGovern, JBJS-br, 2011) even showed a 74% decrease in deep-joint infection rates after discontinuing the use of forced-air patient warming. They switched to air-free HotDog patient warming (1250 patients, 2.5 [...]
Yet another peer-reviewed study—the third in the past five months—has been published showing that forced-air patient warming generates convection current activity in the vicinity of the surgical site, which could lead to contamination of the sterile field. The study, published by Dr. Kiran Dasari in the March issue of Anaesthesia, is more evidence that a significant [...]
Researchers in the UK published a study in the February, 2012, issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery-Brexamining the effects of forced-air warming on operating room airflow and surgical site sterility. Summary: “Forced-air warming resulted in a significant mean increase in the temperature (1.1°C vs 0.4°C, p<0.0001) and number of particles (1038.2 vs 224.8, [...]
Previously, research studying the effects of forced-air warming on laminar flow operating theaters was limited to contamination…until now. The use of forced-air warming during orthopedic implant surgery was associated with a 3.8 times increase in deep joint infections as compared to warming patients without forced-air, according to a newly published study. The study, published in the [...]
“How can forced-air warming be unsafe when research shows that it reduces infections?” This is a common question, and the best explanation was given by Yale scientist Dr. Marc Abreu in the October 2010 Anesthesiology News Review. In the article, titled New Concepts in Perioperative Temperature Management: Monitoring and Management, Dr. Abreu wrote that, “…any potential airborne contamination caused [...]
Here is the latest evidence of forced-air warming units contaminating the operating room by overcoming protective laminar flow ventilation. The room temperature tracer particles and bubbles are neutrally buoyant, which is to say they follow the air currents of the room. When forced-air warming units dump 900 watts of waste heat into the operating room, it is [...]