Criteria for determining steam sterilization cycles for lubricated and nonlubricated mechanical equipment.

Requirements and procedures for determining steam sterilization cycles for lubricated and nonlubricated, complex, mechanical equipment are established. Factors affecting exposure times are discussed, as are procedures and data needed to determine the penetrability of steam into mechanical equipment, and the effect of lubricating oil in impeding steam penetration to the spore. The total effects of these factors in sterilizing times are presented. Sterilizers with a prevacuum cycle, which can remove air from the equipment efficiently and replace it with saturated steam, are recommended for complex mechanical equipment.

Hospital microbicidal processes.

Due to the multiplicity of hospital operations, numerous specialized procedures are required to control the dissemination of infectious agents. More stringent microbicidal control procedures are required in standard hospital operations to reduce this growing problem. The major processes of microbial control, i.e., sterilization and disinfection, should be more broadly applied to all hospital operations rather than simply to "dirty cases". Sterilization and disinfection processes are discussed and summarized showing their specific applications to infection control, their limitations, and recommended control measures that should be undertaken to give greater assurance of efficacy.