The Assessment of Practical and Safety Aspects of Recommended Surface Disinfection and Ultraviolet-C Cleaning Procedures for the Anesthesia Workspace

Background Cleaning procedures for the anesthesia workspace can generate substantial reductions in <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> (<i>S. aureus</i>) transmission and all-cause surgical site infections (SSIs), including for the anesthesia machine. In this study, we evaluated their practicality and safety. Methods A total of seven volunteer anesthesiologists were briefly trained (two-minute video) regarding the implementation of surface disinfection and triangular (one emitter at the head and on each side of the operating room table) ultraviolet-C (UV-C) cleaning procedures. Volunteers were each randomized to three cleaning trials involving surface disinfection cleaning or surface disinfection cleaning plus two minutes of triangular UV-C treatment. The total time and efficacy of each cleaning procedure were measured along with the risk for inadvertent UV-C and ozone exposure. Results The mean (standard deviation (SD)) surface disinfection wiping time was 2.1 (1.5) minutes. The mean (SD) surface disinfection wiping efficacy among the seven participants was 1.13 (0.15), where 1 = some and 2 = full cleaning. The mean (SD) marginal increase for UV-C augmentation of surface disinfection wiping was 10.5 (2.1) minutes. The mean (SD) for UV-C dose delivery was 73.25 (21.85) mJ/cm² for the anesthesia machine and 32.76 (15.55) for the anesthesia cart, with delivery ≥ 27.01 (0.15) mJ/cm². There was zero ozone generation or inadvertent UV-C exposure. Conclusions Evidence-based anesthesia machine surface disinfection and triangular UV-C cleaning procedures are practical. Two minutes of triangular UV-C is a reasonable approach for the augmentation of surface disinfection that was largely ineffective, even despite training. These study results support a negligible risk for inadvertent UV-C or ozone exposure.