3 ms·

>in times of shortage you could sanitize and sterilize multiple use metal parts in house Got one word for you: prions. Standard sanitization procedures do not

>in times of shortage you could sanitize and sterilize multiple use metal parts in house Got one word for you: prions. Standard sanitization procedures do not work with them, and if the hospital is not setup to decontaminate for prions, they're unlikely to be able to to it during the crisis. see https://www.memphis.edu/ehs/pdfs/deconprions.pdf https://www.memphis.edu/ehs/pdfs/deconprions.pdf for what it takes.

swebs 7y ago
>Autoclave at 132 C for 4.5 hours All hospitals should have autoclaves, shouldn't they?
- neltnerb 7y ago
  Every biology adjacent facility I've ever heard of requires them for at a minimum biohazard waste disposal. I don't know how a hospital could not have enough given that all those plastic one time use parts still get autoclaved after disposal. In terms of overall mass, sterilizing all those parts should be equivalent to throwing them away. It would require different internal procedures though, I don't think people are used to saving and reusing things. And it would be more labor intensive. And autoclaving might destroy the parts. Most of which seem like reasonable tradeoffs in an emergency.
- pnutjam 7y ago
  Not everything can go in autoclaves: https://www.denverpost.com/2019/06/16/porter-hospital-infections-surgical-sterilization-lawsuit/ https://www.denverpost.com/2019/06/16/porter-hospital-infect...
elric 7y ago
I'll add Candida Auris to the list of scary things that are hard to kill in hospitals: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candida_auris https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candida_auris
MPSimmons 7y ago
That is a valid argument for neurological equipment, which has the highest liklihood of infection for prions, but during this pandemic, the likelihood of prion transmission is very remote, probably to the point that it approaches zero, and is probably zero for these valves.
- Balgair 7y ago
  Not all prions need to break skin to be an issue. Kuru, one of the more infamous prions, was transmitted orally [0]. Mad Cow is also thought to be transmitted orally, but research is on going. Though a low possibility, the absolute last thing you need is an even more complicated issue running about during a world-wide triage/crisis. To save live you are trying to eliminate variables, not add to them. [0] Kuru is not something you want to research whilst eating, fyi. Hell, none of them are.
  - s0rce 7y ago
    transmitted orally from eating neural tissues not from prions in saliva that could contaminate medical equipment such as ventilators (that's my understanding at least)
    - Balgair 7y ago
      Mad Cow is still active in it's research. We cannot yet rule out that salivary contact is a transmitter of prions, though I agree that it is very unlikely. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(03)00578-4/fulltext https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3...
- eveningcoffee 7y ago
  It is in the eyes https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/detecting-prions-eyes https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/detecti...

swebs 7y ago

>Autoclave at 132 C for 4.5 hours All hospitals should have autoclaves, shouldn't they?

neltnerb 7y ago
Every biology adjacent facility I've ever heard of requires them for at a minimum biohazard waste disposal. I don't know how a hospital could not have enough given that all those plastic one time use parts still get autoclaved after disposal. In terms of overall mass, sterilizing all those parts should be equivalent to throwing them away. It would require different internal procedures though, I don't think people are used to saving and reusing things. And it would be more labor intensive. And autoclaving might destroy the parts. Most of which seem like reasonable tradeoffs in an emergency.
pnutjam 7y ago
Not everything can go in autoclaves: https://www.denverpost.com/2019/06/16/porter-hospital-infections-surgical-sterilization-lawsuit/ https://www.denverpost.com/2019/06/16/porter-hospital-infect...

elric 7y ago

I'll add Candida Auris to the list of scary things that are hard to kill in hospitals: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candida_auris https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candida_auris

MPSimmons 7y ago

That is a valid argument for neurological equipment, which has the highest liklihood of infection for prions, but during this pandemic, the likelihood of prion transmission is very remote, probably to the point that it approaches zero, and is probably zero for these valves.

Balgair 7y ago
Not all prions need to break skin to be an issue. Kuru, one of the more infamous prions, was transmitted orally [0]. Mad Cow is also thought to be transmitted orally, but research is on going. Though a low possibility, the absolute last thing you need is an even more complicated issue running about during a world-wide triage/crisis. To save live you are trying to eliminate variables, not add to them. [0] Kuru is not something you want to research whilst eating, fyi. Hell, none of them are.
- s0rce 7y ago
  transmitted orally from eating neural tissues not from prions in saliva that could contaminate medical equipment such as ventilators (that's my understanding at least)
  - Balgair 7y ago
    Mad Cow is still active in it's research. We cannot yet rule out that salivary contact is a transmitter of prions, though I agree that it is very unlikely. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(03)00578-4/fulltext https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3...
eveningcoffee 7y ago
It is in the eyes https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/detecting-prions-eyes https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/detecti...