Sterilization of Medical Instruments

Abstract

A need exists for a portable sterilization system that can quickly sterilize skin for possible use with medical instruments and skin catheters. To address this challenge, MicroStructure Technologies (MicroST) is developing an atmospheric pressure nonthermal plasmas for rapid deactivation of cells and bacterial spores on surfaces. For example, the lethal Ames strain of Bacillis anthrocis has been deactivated after a minute of ionized gas exposure. The objective of this DARPA seedling project is to demonstrate the sterilization efficiency of novel plasma blanket designs on: * Inoculant bacteria such as Staphylococcus and possibly Leishmaniasis. * Bacterial spores require longer exposures to ionized gases to effect sterilization * The inoculant shall be placed on the top and/or bottom of artificial skin to reveal surface and subcutaneous sterilizatiofl capability of the ionized gas treatment. The plasma blanket succeeded in demonstrating close to a log 3 reduction in bacterial cells on skin samples.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 06, 2007
Accession Number
ADA471591

Entities

People

  • Joseph Birmingham
  • Mary Moore
  • R. G. Moore

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Artificial Skin
  • Bacteria
  • Barometric Pressure
  • Cells
  • Dielectrics
  • Efficiency
  • Electric Fields
  • Electrical Properties
  • Electron Density
  • Electrons
  • Field Conditions
  • Gases
  • Ionized Gases
  • Measurement
  • Microstructure
  • Resonant Frequency
  • Spores

Readers

  • Immunology
  • Mathematics or Statistics
  • Plasma Physics.