Source avec lien : Journal of Hospital Infection, 117(November 2021). 10.1016/j.jhin.2021.08.022
Les sous-produits gazeux générés par les dispositifs chirurgicaux – collectivement appelés » fumée chirurgicale » – présentent le risque de transmettre des virus infectieux des patients aux équipes chirurgicales. Cependant, les preuves sont insuffisantes pour évaluer et atténuer les risques de transmission du SRAS-CoV-2 par la fumée chirurgicale.
Background Gaseous by-products generated by surgical devices—collectively referred to as “surgical smoke”—present the hazard of transmitting infective viruses from patients to surgical teams. However, insufficient evidence exists to evaluate and mitigate the risks of SARS-CoV-2 transmission via surgical smoke. Aim To demonstrate the existence and infectivity of human coronavirus RNA in surgical smoke using a model experiment and to evaluate the possibility of lowering transmission risk by filtration through a surgical mask. Methods Pelleted HeLa-ACE2-TMPRSS2 cells infected with human coronavirus were incised by electric scalpel and ultrasonic scalpel, separately. A vacuum system was used to obtain surgical smoke in the form of hydrosol. RT-qPCR was used to analyse samples for the presence of viral RNA, and infectivity was determined through plaque assay. Furthermore, a surgical mask was placed centrally in the vacuum line to evaluate its ability to filter viral RNA present in the surgical smoke. Findings In this model, 1/106 – 1/105 of the viral RNA contained in the incision target was detected in the collected surgical smoke. The virus present in the smoke was unable to induce plaque formation in cultured cells. In addition, filtration of surgical smoke through a surgical mask effectively reduced the amount of viral RNA by at least 99.80%. Conclusions This study proved that surgical smoke could carry human coronavirus, though viral infectivity was considerably reduced. In clinical settings, surgical mask filtration should provide sufficient additional protection against potential coronavirus— including SARS-CoV-2—infection facilitated by surgical smoke.