In this article, we will discuss the materials and precautions for disposable medical supplies (such as medical bed sheets, medical bedspreads, surgical drapes, surgical gowns, and surgical packs, etc.).

If you are a health care worker, you will feel the different feelings of various medical supplies with different quality materials.

When you wear a soft, comfortable, breathable surgical gown, and when you open a surgical pack, or when you have a surgical drape for a surgical patient, have you ever thought about the materials of these disposable medical supplies? What are the requirements for these materials?

Well, trust me, Here I will give you a detailed answer.

The main material of disposable medical supplies is medical non-woven fabrics. Medical non-woven is a kind of non-woven fabric. So, first, let's understand what is non-woven fabric?

Definition of non-woven fabric: What is non-woven fabric?

Non-woven fabric is a fabric-like material made from staple fiber (short) and long fibers (continuous long), bonded together by chemical, mechanical, heat or solvent treatment. The term is used in the textile manufacturing industry to denote fabrics, such as felt, which are neither woven nor knitted.

Definition of Medical Non-woven Fabric: What is medical non-woven fabric?

Medical nonwoven products are medical and sanitary textiles made from chemical fibers including polyester, polyamide, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polypropylene, carbon fiber, and glass fiber. Including disposable masks, protective clothing, surgical gowns, isolation gowns, lab coats, nurse caps, surgical caps, doctor hats, surgical packs, c-section packs, first aid kits, diapers, pillowcases, medical bed sheets, quilt covers, shoe covers, etc. disposable medical supplies.

Compared with traditional cotton is woven medical textiles, medical non-woven fabrics have the characteristics of high filtration efficiency to bacteria and dust, low surgical infection rate, convenient sterilization and sterilization, and easy compounding with other materials. As a ready-to-use disposable product, medical non-woven products are not only convenient to use, safe and hygienic, but also effective in preventing bacterial infection and iatrogenic cross-infection.

What Are The Characteristics of Medical Non-woven Fabrics?

It breaks through the traditional textile principle. Compared with traditional pure cotton is woven textiles, medical non-woven fabrics are moisture-proof, breathable, flexible, light, non-combustible, easy to decompose, non-irritating, inexpensive, and recyclable. Other advantages, it is very suitable for the medical field.

1. The air permeability is excellent, the medical non-woven fabric is made of fiber and has porosity, good air permeability;

2. Good filterability, polypropylene chips do not absorb water, zero moisture content, easy to filter;

3. Good heat preservation;

4. Non-irritating, the product is produced by FDA food-grade raw materials, does not contain other chemical components, has stable performance, no odor, and does not irritate the skin;

5. Good waterproof;

6. Good scalability, it is made by directly spinning polypropylene into a mesh, and the strength of the product is better than that of the general staple fiber product, the strength is non-directional, and the longitudinal and transverse strengths are similar;

7. Not unkempt, flexible, reversible, without the directionality of the fabric

8. It has good hand feeling and softness. It consists of fine fiber (2-3D) light-point hot melt bonding, and the finished product has moderate softness and comfort.

9.  Lightweight, with polypropylene resin as the main raw material, the proportion is only 0.9, only three-fifths of cotton, fluffy, feel-good;

10. Compared with woven fabrics, it has high productivity and fast production speed;

11. Low price, can be mass-produced;

12. Antibacterial and anti-chemical agents, polypropylene is a chemical blunt substance, does not worm, and can isolate the bacteria and insects in the liquid; antibacterial, alkali corrosion, the finished product does not affect the strength due to erosion;

13. Environmentally friendly and non-polluting, the chemical structure of polypropylene is not strong, and the molecular chain structure is easily broken so that it can effectively enter the degradation process quickly.

What Are The Applications of Medical Nonwovens?

Medical non-woven fabrics are widely used in medicine, such as masks, surgical caps, disposable surgical gowns, disposable medical sheets, maternity bags, diapers, surgical drapes, surgical packs, etc. The medical non-woven fabric is placed outdoors, and its longest life is only 90 days. If it is placed indoors, it will naturally decompose within 8 years, so, it is a new environmentally friendly material.

As a disposable product, medical non-woven fabrics are favored by the market not only for convenience, hygiene but also for effectively preventing bacterial infection and iatrogenic cross-infection.

How To Control The Quality of Medical Non-woven Fabrics?

1. Medical nonwovens are different from ordinary non-woven fabrics and composite non-woven fabrics. Ordinary non-woven fabrics do not have antibacterial properties; composite non-woven fabrics have a good waterproof effect and poor air permeability, and are generally used for surgical gowns and surgical drape sheets; The medical non-woven fabric is pressed by the process of spunbonding, melt-blown and spun-bond (SMS). It has the characteristics of bacteriostatic, hydrophobic, ventilating and no dandruff. It is used for the final packaging of sterilized articles and is used once, no need to clean.

2. Quality standards for medical non-woven fabrics: Medical nonwovens used to sterilize the final packaging material of medical devices shall comply with the specifications of EN13795/ANSI/AAMI PB70.

3. Medical non-woven fabric use period: The validity period of medical non-woven fabrics is generally 2 to 3 years. The expiration date of products of different manufacturers is slightly different. Please refer to the instructions for use. Sterile products produced by medical non-woven fabrics should be valid for 180 days and are not affected by sterilization methods.　

4. The non-woven fabric used for packaging the sterilized articles is preferably 50 g/m2 plus or minus 5 g.

5. When the medical non-woven packaging surgical instruments are closed, the closed packaging method should be divided into two layers of non-woven fabrics. The repeated folding can form a long curved path to prevent microorganisms from “easy” entering the sterilization package. The layer of non-woven fabric is packaged once.

6. After the medical non-woven fabric is sterilized by high temperature, the internal results will change, affecting the penetration and sterilization properties of the sterilization medium. Therefore, the medical non-woven fabric must not be repeatedly used for sterilization.

7. Due to the hydrophobic properties of the non-woven fabric, excessive and excessively heavy metal instruments are sterilized by high temperature, and condensed water is formed during the cooling process, which tends to produce wet packets. Therefore, in the large equipment package, the water-absorbing material is padded, the sterilizer load is appropriately reduced, the gap between the sterilization bags is left, the drying time is appropriately extended, and the wet bag is avoided as much as possible.

8. The low-temperature plasma of hydrogen peroxide should be made of a special non-woven fabric, and medical non-woven fabrics containing plant fibers cannot be used because plant fibers absorb hydrogen peroxide.

9.  Although medical non-woven fabrics are not medical devices, they are related to the quality of medical device sterilization. The quality of medical non-woven fabrics as packaging materials and the packaging methods are essential to ensure the level of sterility.

10. Refer to the manufacturer's qualified inspection report and product batch test report, and check the physical and chemical properties of medical non-woven fabrics to ensure the quality of the products used.

What Are The Main Factors Driving the Development of Disposable Medical Non-woven?

1. Growing concerns about infections in hospitals: Repetitive use of non-woven fabrics is likely to cause the penetration of flocculation and microbes, which is an important cause of postoperative inflammation, granuloma, infection, adhesion;

2. European EN13795 and US AAMI PB70 regulations promote: These regulations refer to protective performance to a very high level and serve as an important basis for operating room consumables;

3.Product price comparison: "On the price, the depreciation fee for each piece of cotton cloth is about 0.4 yuan, the cleaning fee is 1.2 yuan, a total of 1.6 yuan, and the disposable non-woven fabric is 1.08 yuan each.";

4. Prevent cross-infection during surgery and protect the health of patients and medical staff. Please use disposable medical non-woven fabrics.　　　　　

At Lantian Medical Supplies, we’re committed to ensuring your safety every step of the way. By crafting surgical gowns with integrity and care, we’re proud to give you everything you need, so you can be certain that you have the right gown for every procedure. When you choose Lantian Medical, you’re getting more than a physical product. We’re dedicated to making sure you have what is needed to give you peace of mind. Insights that give your staff every advantage. The  integrity that’s woven into every product we craft. A portfolio of products that accommodate every need.

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