Go Green with STERRAD™

Reduce your H2O2 Emissions

STERRAD™ Systems and V-PRO® sterilizers are widely used low-temperature sterilizers that use a hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) sterilant to reprocess a wide range of temperature- and moisture-sensitive instruments.Through facilitating safe and effective sterilization of medical devices, they have the potential to play a critical role in preventing the incidence of surgical site infections and ensuring patient safety.2, 3

Whilst H2O2 offers improved safety compared with other commonly used sterilants, such as ethylene oxide (EtO),1 there are still strict safety standards in place to ensure that environmental concentrations of H2Oremain at safe levels for sterilization staff.4, 5

In order to gain an understanding of the safety profile of different low-temperature sterilizers, a comparison study was conducted to evaluate the environmental H2O2 emissions of two STERRAD™ and two STERIS V-PRO® sterilizers.1

Key Results

Hydrogen Peroxide exposure limits

  • Upon opening of both V-PRO® sterilizers’ chamber doors, H2O2 concentrations spiked to levels above the maximum ACGIH® short-term exposure limit (5 ppm), with peaks ranging from 5 ppm to 20 ppm1
  • The STERRAD™ 100NX and STERRAD NX™ never registered H2O2 concentrations above 0.3 ppm, well below the ACGIH® short-term peak exposure limit1
  • Overall, environmental H2O2 emissions from V-PRO® sterilizers were up to 67 times higher than emissions from STERRAD™ sterilizers1

This study demonstrates that STERRAD™ Systems contribute to a safe working environment by limiting H2Oemissions.1 The results show that the use of gas plasma to dissociate H2O2 is more effective in limiting emissions than methods used in other sterilizers, such as the catalytic converters in V-PRO® sterilizers.1, 6

Literature / Documents/Find out more

References

  1. Advanced Sterilization Products. Comparison Study of Environmental Hydrogen Peroxide Levels of STERRAD™ Systems and STERIS V-PRO™ Low Temperature Sterilizers Reveals Striking Differences. 2016.

  2. Rutala WA, Gergen MF, Sickbert-Bennett EE, et al. Comparative evaluation of the microbicidal activity of low-temperature sterilization technologies to steam sterilization. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2020;41:391-395.

  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities. Low-Temperature Sterilization Technologies. 2008.

  4. American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists. Chemical Substances Threshold Limit Values (TLVs®).

  5. United States Department of Labor. Occupational Safety & Health Administration Permissable Exposure Limits.

  6. STERIS Healthcare. V-PRO® maX Low Temperature Sterilization System - Technical Data Monograph.

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