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What are the raw materials for surgical drapes? The most comprehensive comparison of surgical drape materials in the medical industry

2024-07-25

Surgical drapes are used to prevent skin bacteria from entering the surgical incision. Surgical drape systems are used to maintain the sterility of the surgical area and can reduce the risk of surgical site infection. Therefore, they are the basic measures to prevent surgical site infection. However, there are many types of drape systems in clinical practice. How to choose the appropriate surgical drape material? The current medical surgical drape materials on the market are summarized as follows.

Surgical drape materials

Currently, the surgical drape systems used in the operating room include cotton woven fabrics, disposable SMS non-woven fabrics, long-fiber polyester fibers, and Woodpulp & Polyester spunlace non-woven fabrics.

Traditional cotton woven drapes
Traditional cotton woven drapes are soft to the touch, have good air permeability, strong toughness, wear resistance, good drape, and can be recycled and washed for repeated use.
After repeated washing, the fibers of cotton woven surgical drapes are prone to aging and deformation, and even small holes that are difficult to detect with the naked eye appear. The wound is not tightly isolated from the surrounding skin, resulting in a reduced microbial barrier effect. Generally, cotton drapes will have a sharp drop in resistance to microorganisms after being reused 25 times, especially when they are soaked, their antibacterial efficiency will be significantly reduced. Some literature reports that cotton drapes should not be reused more than 50 times. At present, hospitals rarely strictly record the number of times cotton drapes are used in accordance with regulations, but only use the presence or absence of holes in cotton drapes as the standard for replacement. Such operations have certain risks.
Cotton drapes are prone to linting during surgical drapes, which increases the number of dust particles in clean air. In Class 100 and Class 10,000 operating rooms, the ratio of 0.5 micron and 5.0 micron dust particles in the air before and after drapes are laid is much higher than that of non-woven surgical drapes.
The number of dust particles is a carrier for bacterial attachment. The higher the concentration of indoor dust particles, the higher the total number of air bacteria. There is a lot of flushing fluid in surgical operations. Traditional cotton drapes make the surgical area and surgical personnel's clothes easily soaked, increasing the possibility of bacterial proliferation. Once the surgical drape is soaked, it is easy to cause the body to lose heat and cause hypothermia.

Disposable SMS (Spunbonded + Meltblown + Spunbonded) non-woven fabric
The meltblown layer in the disposable SMS (Spunbonded + Meltblown + Spunbonded) non-woven fabric structure has good filtration performance, which can effectively block bacteria and particles from being waterproof and impermeable. The spunbonded layer can provide certain waterproof and impermeability to prevent liquid penetration. Compared with other materials, SMS has a lower cost.
In practice, disposable non-woven fabrics are fragile, not as strong as cotton fabrics, and have poor tear resistance. They are easily punctured by sharp instruments and lose their isolation function, causing pollution. At the same time, due to the light weight and poor drape of SMS non-woven fabrics, they cannot droop naturally when laying the operating table and are easy to shift.
The impermeability of disposable non-woven fabrics is better than that of cotton fabrics, and the number of dust particles generated when laying drapes is less than that of cotton fabrics. Literature shows that disposable surgical gowns and surgical drapes are one of the sources of urban garbage waste. SMS nonwoven fabric is a disposable consumable product, which will generate a large amount of medical waste, and the cost of medical waste treatment will increase accordingly; the large consumption of energy and raw materials is contrary to environmental benefits.

Long-fiber polyester fiber fabric
Long-fiber polyester fiber is a high-density fabric with permanent hydrophobicity, good toughness, antistatic and no linting, and can be reused many times.
However, in some laparoscopic operations where the surgical position needs to be constantly changed, due to the special position of the surgeon and the frequent adjustment of the operating table during the operation, it is easy to damage or contaminate the sterile area of the operation, which will also affect the sterile area of the operation. The style of surgical drapes is single and cannot fully meet the needs of clinical pain-free patients. When the patient needs to expand or extend the surgical incision, the doctor can only cut the holes of the surgical drapes into the required shape and size; not only does it affect the use, but also the lint may fall off the incision after cutting, causing aseptic inflammatory reaction; the surgical drapes that are repaired or damaged in the supply room after surgery will also cause cost waste in the hospital.
Due to the fiber characteristics of polyester fiber, long-fiber polyester fiber cloth has low water absorption, poor melting resistance and dyeing performance, and needs to be dyed with disperse dyes at high temperature.

Spunlace nonwoven medical materials
Woodpulp&Polyester spunlace nonwoven is a synthetic material made of 55% wood pulp and 45% polyester fiber. The surgical drape made of this Woodpulp&Polyester spunlace nonwoven does not produce dust and broken fibers, has excellent antibacterial and waterproof capabilities, and is flame retardant, non-static, non-irritating, hydrophobic, and not easy to be soaked. And it is a disposable consumable, easy and quick to use. In Europe and the United States, disposable nonwoven drapes have developed into the mainstream product of surgical drape systems with their excellent performance.
Soonercleaning medical spunlace nonwovens use a unique "two-step" spunlace technology, which has significant advantages in water absorption and breathability, and has good softness and strength. Compared with SMS and PE materials, it is more environmentally friendly and more comfortable. Compared with cotton cloth, wood pulp polyester spunlace cloth has more protective performance and more competitive cost.

These characteristics make wood pulp polyester spunlace an ideal choice for surgical drapes. This material can be made not only into surgical drapes, but also into sterile drapes, medical sterilization tray liner, surgical gowns and other products, especially suitable for surgical environments that require both comfort and protection. .

Soonercleaning professional medical grade spunlace nonwovens have passed the preliminary clinical trials and the European EN 13795 standard and have been promoted and used in clinical practice.

From traditional cotton woven surgical drape materials to long-fiber polyester fiber materials, from disposable SMS nonwovens to Woodpulp&Polyeste composite spunlace nonwovens, drape materials are constantly being updated. AORN recommends that surgical drape systems should be made of lint-free, non-toxic and non-abrasive materials; surgical drapes should be able to resist punctures, tears and abrasions to prevent the spread of microorganisms, liquids and other particles between sterile and unsterilized areas; at the same time, surgical drapes should be soft and flexible, have good drape, be able to cover the body tightly, and have a certain insulation function.
Among them, the performance of preventing microbial penetration is one of the key indicators for evaluating the safety performance of surgical drape systems. Soonercleaning conducts innovative research and development based on actual clinical conditions, looking for suitable drape materials to make up for the shortcomings of existing materials; it promotes medical products to keep pace with the times to meet the needs of clinical practice, improve the use and satisfaction of medical staff, and improve medical efficiency and quality.
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