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Evaluation of N95 respirator ultraviolet decontamination and clinical reuse with quantitative fit testing

Part of: SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 May 2021

Gregory K. Wanner Open the ORCID record for Gregory K. Wanner [Opens in a new window] ,
Douglas Ader ,
Richard Caplan ,
Amit S. Padaki ,
Debra Ravert  and
Marci Drees
Gregory K. Wanner*
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, ChristianaCare, Newark, Delaware
Douglas Ader
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, ChristianaCare, Newark, Delaware
Richard Caplan
Affiliation:
Value Institute, ChristianaCare, Newark, Delaware
Amit S. Padaki
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, ChristianaCare, Newark, Delaware
Debra Ravert
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, ChristianaCare, Newark, Delaware
Marci Drees
Affiliation:
Departments of Medicine, Quality and Patient Safety, ChristianaCare, Newark, Delaware
*
Author for correspondence: Gregory K. Wanner, E-mail: gregory.wanner@christianacare.org
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Abstract

The supply of N95 respirators has been severely strained by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We used quantitative fit-testing to evaluate 16 participants and 45 respirators through up to 4 rounds of ultraviolet decontamination and clinical reuse. The mean fit-test failure rate was 29.7%, and the probability of failure increased through N95 reuse.

Type
Concise Communication
Information
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 43 , Issue 9 , September 2022 , pp. 1272 - 1274
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America

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References

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