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India is the
second largest populated country with increased incidence of
diseases (AIDS, TB, etc.). Population of senior citizens is also
rising in India by ~ 15% every 5 years. This emphasizes for
increased medical attention. Plastic non-wovens are the wonder
products which have been extending the helping hand to tackle
this situation.
Non-woven
medical disposable products have been well established over the
past many years. They help in providing advanced infection
control and combating critical medical infections such as MRSA,
HIV, CJD and Hepatitis B. Non Wovens provide the highest levels
of liquid and microbial protection to both patients and
operation theatre staff.
Many research
studies in infection control highlight the benefits of single
use products i.e. no contagious agents left by previous patient
/ environment, no wear and tear due to numerous laundering
cycles, no compulsory rigorous re-testing before every re-use &
no complex division of responsibility boundaries between
supplier and end user.
WHO also
advocates use of single piece personal protective equipments
such as Gowns, Masks, Gloves, etc. to help prevent spread of
infection and non-wovens can best meet these requirements.
Non-woven is a
fabric obtained without weaving made from either synthetic or
natural fibres. Polypropylene is the material of choice for
manufacturing non-woven fabrics. It is chemically inert, light
weight, food grade, sterilizeable & microwavable. It can be made
blood repellent & stain repellent. Various coatings can also be
given to make it bacterial resistant.
Various
techniques like Land Filling, Incineration, Microwave
Disinfection, Steam Reforming, Infrared Sterilization etc. are
used presently for disposal of hazardous medical waste.
Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar has developed a new
technology i.e. Plasma Pyrolysis that can help in complete
disposal of the articles with no detrimental effect on the
environment.
This technology
integrates thermo-chemical properties of plasma with the
pyrolysis process. The intense and versatile heat generation
capability of plasma pyrolysis technology enables it to dispose
all types of medical waste including polymeric, biomedical &
hazardous waste in a safe and reliable manner. It completely
decomposes aromatic & aliphatic hydrocarbons in less than 1
second. EPA has included plasma pyrolysis as non-incineration
process and certified the process as “Alternative to
Incineration”. |
