July 1, 2020 9:46 AM
Researchers found a way to disinfect N95 chinstraps with microwave steam, and with very simple steps to take.
Cleaning the chinstrap or face mask in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic is very important, and a recent study clarified how to clean the chinstrap with the microwave.
Researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital unveiled this method, where steam is used.
The N95 masks They are those used by health personnel, who are on the front lines of battle against Covid-19, and it is very important that their use be reserved for them.
For this reason, the cleaning of this element is very important, not only so that it can be reused by doctors, but also so that the chinstrap is not damaged.
This study was published in the journal ‘American Society of Microbiology’, and there describes all the elements that must be used to disinfect it.
Glass containers, mesh of commercial products bags, an elastic band and a microwave with a capacity of 1,100 W: those are the essential elements to decontaminate them.
In one of the cleaning protocols, they used a 10cm diameter ceramic cup with 60ml of distilled water and covered with the mesh of a bag.
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One minute in the microwave was enough for the respirator to be suspended directly over the steam generated and already disinfected.
When disinfecting the bowl, se placed the N95 mask over the open cup and placed it in the microwave for three minutes again. There, the level of contamination was further reduced.
“Accordingly, we hypothesized that direct exposure to steam is essential for effective decontamination and we seek to identify a commercial container of sufficient diameter to treat a full respirator,” they stated in the study.
Another method was to place the chinstraps on a 17 × 17 × 7.5 cm glass container, plus 60 ml of distilled water, and steam directly on the N95.
And they concluded that the glass container is more efficient: “After 2 minutes of microwave steam treatment, we were unable to detect residual viable phage in the coupons. This represents a 1 minute reduction in sterilization time compared to the ceramic cup decontamination test. ”
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