Blog Tag: post operative infection

MRSA or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium responsible for several difficult-to-treat infections in humans. It is also call mutlidrug resistant Staphylococcus aureus and oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

One of the big challenges in treating this type of infection is the growing concern that the existing antibiotics now used to treat MRSA are no longer effective and once the MRSA infection sets in it is often a losing battle to keep the infection from spreading. This issue is now a major reason for new procedures regarding sterilization of all surfaces in hospitals and clinics.

Post-operative infections affect over 5% of the people that enter hospitals for surgery or wound treatments costing hospitals and health insurance companies hundreds of millions of dollars each year. Many of these patients require extensive treatments and often succumb  to the MRSA infections. Hospitals, Clinics, nursing homes and other health care related facilities are all taking special precautions to minimize the possibility of infections recognizing how quickly these types of bacteria can spread by contact.

Pure Air Systems, has been manufacturing commercial grade HEPA air filtration systems since 1985 and has extensive experience in placing its HEPA systems in various types of medical facilities including hospitals, clinics, oncology wards, isolation ( both positive and negative pressure) rooms, pharmaceutical manufacturing and portable surgery suites (both US and overseas). With systems ranging in capacity from 50 CFM to 2,000 CFM and the use of the new variable speed ECM digitally controlled motors, the PAS HEPA units meet and/or exceed the optimum performance requirements to remove or reduce the number of sub-micron airborne particles at a minimum efficiency of 99.99% at 0.3 microns or larger. With efficiency approaching 97% below 0.3 microns.

Over the past 10 years a number of air filter technologies have been tried to compete with HEPA systems in the removal of harmful airborne contaminants. Ozone generators, electronic air cleaners and specially treated filter medias have been used in-lieu of HEPA systems due to their much lower costs and size. However, after many trials of these alternate systems it has been determined that none of these other systems even comes close to the removal efficiency of the HEPA systems, not to mention that these alternate units could only operate in the 50 CFM to 250 CFM range.

HEPA medias are more expensive and require more powerful fan motors to pull the air through the HEPA filters. But is their air restrictive density that allow for the capture of sub-micron particulate and this design feature differentiates the use of HEPA with all other types of air filtration systems and products. Few companies have the know-how to design systems that get the most out HEPA filters and even fewer have systems that can move in excess of 2,000  CFM through these HEPA filters.

The thousands of installations of HEPA units in the past 28 years has provide PAS with the knowledge and experience to properly apply this technology in applications ranging from odor control in police stations to providing clean -room environments for sensitive testing equipment and everything in between.

For more information on the unique HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems offered by PAS, please go to our website at: www.pureairsystems.com or follow us on Twitter @pureairsystems. If you want to contact us directly you can reach us on our toll-free number at: 800-869-8025.

For most people the word hospital conjures up a feeling of safety, help, relief, life saving and comfort. The doctors and nurses are highly trained and skilled at providing medical treatment for any type of physical trauma, disease or malady. The operating rooms are filled with  the most advanced diagnostic and surgical equipment money can buy. The rooms are all under positive pressure using 100% HEPA filtered air to eliminate the possibility of infection. During the operation you are protected by this very sterile environment. However, once you leave the operating room everything changes.

Depending upon which source you use, post operative infections account for over 100,000 deaths in the US every year. This does not include the number of patients  affected that have to return to the hospital or require follow-up treatment to deal with infections incurred while being treated in the hospital. And there is a good reason to be concerned. Treating some of the infections has been challenged by bacteria that have become resistant to all the standard antibiotics. But there is one way to minimize the expensive and devastating consequences of post operative infections.

As noted in the beginning of this blog the operating rooms utilize HEPA filters to eliminate the possibility of any airborne pathogens that may pose a potential risk for infection. Often some recovery rooms for patients the have received bone marrow transplants or have a weakened immune system due to a specific treatment, use HEPA filtered air in the rooms and these rooms, like operating rooms, are pressurized.

Pure Air Systems has been manufacturing HEPA and Carbon based, commercial grade air filtration systems since 1985. They use only certified, scanned HEPA filters in their heavy duty, all steel housed systems. The PAS units also incorporate the ECM style variable speed motors that are rated 120/240 volt, 50/60 Hz motors. These motors not only use less electricity but can be digitally controlled for best air flow to match required filtration performance.

The PAS HEPA systems are used in many commercial applications and a large number are utilized by hospitals, clinics and medical facilities in the U.S. and around the world. These compact, high volume units can both pressurize and provide 100% HEPA filtered air in medium sized operating rooms as well as isolation rooms and individual patient rooms. For medical facilities requiring a cost effective method for minimizing or eliminating infections in their facilities, the PAS units offer superior performance at a cost that is considerably less than the cost of treating patients with severe infections.

Today, over 60% of the PAS HEPA systems are used in the residential and light commercial markets. For patients returning home from long hospital stays using one of the various central HEPA systems by PAS can be of significant value. Also, PAS makes a unique, high volume portable HEPA unit that can be used effectively in any single room application. In either case, these HEPA systems can make the difference between a significant recovery or continued treatment for infection.

For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon based filtration systems please go to our website at: www.pureairsystems.com . Or you can reach us on Twitter: @pureairsystems. Call us during normal business hours on our toll-free number. 800-869-8025.

Health care is currently a hotly debated issue in the U.S. Our health care system is considered one of  the best in the world and leads the world in developing new drugs, surgery procedures and medical equipment. The surgery rooms are state-of-the-art and incorporate the best HEPA filtration systems to minimize the possibility of infection during surgery.

In the developing countries and third world countries, especially those in Africa, health care is not readily available to much of the population and what is available is sometimes rudimentary at best.

One of the primary killers in any U.S. hospital is infection, specifically post operative infection. This is why the surgery suites and operating rooms are kept under 100% Hepa filtered positive pressure air. This helps to keep any bacteria or airborne pathogen from getting into the operating room when the patient’s cavity area is exposed.

In most third world countries there is little money available for hospitals and high-tech surgery rooms. Even worse, there is little to no air filtration available for these facilities. Infection is one of the main challenges in these facilities.

Pure Air Systems has been designing and manufacturing commercial grade HEPA systems since 1985 and is considered one of the leaders in high volume, digitally controlled HEPA and Carbon based systems.

PAS uses the new ECM variable speed 120/240 volt, 50/60 Hz motors in all of its larger units. These motors are designed to operate anywhere in the world. Since most countries, other than the US, use 220 volt and 50 HZ electrical current the PAS line of HEPA systems are perfectly suited for these locations.

The African continent is no different. Their hospitals use  220 volt 50 HZ for their electrical power. The PAS line of HEPA systems have a air flow range from 600 CFM to 2000 CFM and with the use of the digitally controlled motors these volumes can be adjusted to any flow for any requirement.

Since the PAS units are fan powered they can be used as stand-alone systems or used in conjunction with a ducted heating/cooling system. In many of the African hospitals they are used as stand-alone units usually located inside or adjacent to the surgery room and then designed to filter all the air in the room through the HEPA system with a small amount of air introduced through the unit from outside the room to ensure the surgery suit is not only 100% filtered but also under positive pressure.

The cost of using even the largest of the PAS HEPA systems is 1/100th the cost of having to build an entire HEPA  based ventilation system for these surgery suites. More importantly, the PAS units are small enough (weighing 200 lbs) that they can be used even in remote, temporary facilities or in mobile hospitals.

For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon based systems offered by Pure Air Systems and a listing of international locations where these units are used please go to our website at: www.pureairsystems.com