disinfection and sterilisation of anaesthetic airway equipment in the elective operation theatre of a tertiary care academic hospital, pre- and post-intervention study

Despite significant advances in antimicrobial agents and modern methods of sterilisation, the effectiveness of disinfection and sterilisation procedures continues to be influenced by several critical factors. These include the type and load of microorganisms present, the nature of the material being disinfected, the concentration and contact time of the chemical agent, and the presence of organic matter.6 A thorough understanding of available disinfectants, sterilisation techniques, and microbial responses to these methods is therefore essential for selecting the most appropriate process for a given clinical application.

Disinfection refers to a process that eliminates most disease-producing microorganisms but does not reliably destroy bacterial spores. In the operating theatre (OT) environment, disinfection of anaesthetic equipment is commonly achieved using liquid chemical disinfectants or wet pasteurisation techniques. Sterilisation, in contrast, is a more rigorous process that destroys or eliminates all forms of microbial life, including bacterial spores, thereby achieving an acceptable level of sterility. Commonly employed sterilisation methods include steam under pressure (autoclaving), dry heat, ethylene oxide (ETO) gas, and hydrogen peroxide gas plasma,7 each of which has specific indications based on the heat and moisture sensitivity of the equipment being processed.