Source avec lien : American Journal of Infection Control, 50(8). 10.1016/j.ajic.2022.02.016
Nous avons examiné la décontamination des masques respiratoires N95 et KN95 à l’aide de MB photoactivé et de 3 variantes du SRAS-CoV-2, le virus responsable du COVID-19, et de 4 pathogènes prioritaires de l’Organisation mondiale de la santé : le virus Ebola, le coronavirus du syndrome respiratoire du Moyen-Orient, le virus Nipah et le virus Lassa. L’inactivation des virus par prétraitement du matériel respiratoire a également été testée.
Background The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a worldwide shortage of N95 respirators, prompting the development of decontamination methods to enable limited reuse. Countries lacking reliable supply chains would also benefit from the ability to safely reuse PPE. Methylene blue (MB) is a light-activated dye with demonstrated antimicrobial activity used to sterilize blood plasma. Decontamination of respirators using photoactivated MB requires no specialized equipment, making it attractive for use in the field during outbreaks. Methods We examined decontamination of N95 and KN95 respirators using photoactivated MB and 3 variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19; and 4 World Health Organization priority pathogens: Ebola virus, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, Nipah virus, and Lassa virus. Virus inactivation by pretreating respirator material was also tested. Results Photoactivated MB inactivated all tested viruses on respirator material, albeit with varying efficiency. Virus applied to respirator material pre-treated with MB was also inactivated, thus MB pretreatment may potentially protect respirator wearers from virus exposure in real-time. Conclusions These results demonstrate that photoactivated MB represents a cost-effective, rapid, and widely deployable method to decontaminate N95 respirators for reuse during supply shortages.