The most common method is using gamma irradiation, whereby products are exposed to gamma radiation which penetrates the packaging and kills all microorganisms. Gamma processing does not cause any significant rise in temperature or leave behind any chemical residue.

Bioburden is the total number of viable (live) microbes on a packaged item prior to sterilisation. This includes bacteria, yeasts and fungi.

SAL is the expected probability of an item being non-sterile after exposure to a valid sterilisation process. The normal SAL for medical devices is 10-3 (one in a thousand) for less critical devices and 10-6 (one in a million) for more critical and invasive devices. Surgical gloves are sterilised at 10-6 SAL.

A Sterility Assurance Level of 10-6 means that for every 1,000,000 items sterilised, there may be one that contains viable microorganism that have survived the sterilisation process. The SAL is a statistical probability that is used because it is impossible to prove that all viable microorganism have been killed during the sterilisation process. In practice …

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The packaging clearly shows they are sterile gloves. Each carton will have a red irradiation sticker, showing that the contents have been gamma sterilised. The irradiation sticker is yellow prior to sterilisation and changes colour to red during processing. A certificate of irradiation is available showing the lot number and carton number and confirming that …

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Dose setting is the process undertaken to establish the level of radiation exposure (dose) required to destroy microorganisms (bioburden) on a product within a specified safety level (Sterilisation Assurance Level—SAL). The process includes a determination of the number of organisms on the packaged, unsterilised product, followed by irradiation at a dose calculated to kill 90% …

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Endotoxins are potent inflammatory agents produced by the cell walls of gram-negative bacteria. They are capable of causing multiple local and systemic reactions including irritation, fever, tissue inflammation, diarrhoea, respiratory distress, and endotoxic shock. They are not destroyed by steam, ethylene oxide or irradiation sterilisation. Endotoxins are also adjuvants, a term applied to substances that …

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