Increasingly   aggressive   desinfectants   are   being   used   to   fight   against   hospital acquired  infections  (HAI)  with  some  severe  side  effects  for  medical  equipments. VELOX  highlights  Trinseo’s  chemical  resistant  blends  for  medical  housings which effectively   maintain   the   durability   and   pleasing   aesthetics of   medical devices otherwise affected during cleaning processes.

Hospital  Acquired  Infections  (HAI)  continue to be a major concern globally. “At any given time, about 1 in 25 in-patients have an infection related to hospital care”, states The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) in the United States. “These infections lead to the loss of tensof thousands of lives and cost the US health care system billions of dollars each year.” Correspondingly,  in  its  Annual  Epidemiological  Report  2016 the  European  Centre  for Disease Prevention and Control reveals that “8% of patients staying in an intensive care unit (ICU)  for  more  than  two  days  presented  with  at  least  one  ICU-acquired  healthcare-associated infection (HAI) under surveillance.”

Use of aggressive chemicals to reduce HAI
The  good  news  though  is  that  steps  are  being  taken  to  reduce  the  incidence  of  HAIs.  And they  are  having  a  positive  impact,  with  HAIs  decreasing  between  2008  and  2014. This  is largely  due  to  guidelines  issued  by  the  Centers  for  Disease  Control  in  the  United  States recommending  that  non-critical  medical  equipment  surfaces should  be  disinfected  with  an EPA-registered low-or intermediate-level disinfectantsuch as one of the following:

• Isopropyl Alcohol
• Bleach
• Phenolic Germicidal
• Iodophor Germicidal
• Quaternary Ammonium Compounds

Today’s medical device housings need to be exposed to powerful disinfectants and cleaners. More  rigorous  cleaning  procedures,  increasing  aggressiveness  of  chemicals,  and  a  move towards  convenient  wipes  for  more  frequent  cleaning  have  led  to  a  substantially  increased rate of medical equipment housing failures.

Need for chemical resistant plastics
While  there have  been  changes  in  cleaning  procedures, little  change has  taken  place in materials  or  design. This  has  created  a  need  for  plastics  that  can withstand  chemical aggressors. Trinseo, a manufacturer of innovative and sustainable plastics solutions, is one of the outriders in this field. “Trinseo’s chemical resistant EMERGE 9000 Advanced Resins series balances a unique combination of advanced properties while maintaining the durability and  pleasing aesthetics needed for today’s medical treatment environment”, says Siobhan Bastiansen, Market  Manager  Medical  Plastics  at  VELOX.  As the distribution  partner  of Trinseo, VELOX offers the EMERGE 9000 Advanced Resins series for medical housings in all of Europe.

Trinseo’s EMERGE series
Trinseo’s Advanced  Resin  solutions combine  the  excellent  processability  of  polycarbonate (PC)  with  selected  polymers  and  additives  such  as  ABS,  PET,  or  colourants  and  deliver compounds  and blends  with  special  properties  needed  for  a  variety  of  applications. The grades  are  specially  designed  for  environments  where  it  is  necessary  to  endure  repeated exposure  to  a  wide  variety  of  aggressive  chemicals,  including  surface  disinfectants  and cleaners.

Whether  for  passive  housings  or  for  powered  housings,  VELOX  offers  a  specifically customised  grade. EMERGE PC/PET  9100CR  Advanced  Resin  is  perfectly  suited  for passive housings and offers high levels of ultraviolet light resistance to help reduce potential colour  shift,  loss  of  surface  gloss  and  property  performance  over  time.  It  offers  a  UL  HB rating at 1.0mm and is biocompatible. The EMERGE PC/PET 9500 on the other hand is an ignition-resistant blend with UL ratings of V-1 at 1.5 mm, V-0 at 2.0 mm, and 5 VA at 2.5 mm. This  makes  it  an  ideal  material  for  devices  that  are  powered  and  need  to  function  in  a demanding environment.

Common  applications  for  the  Advanced  Resins  series  are  patient  monitoring equipment housings, medical imaging and diagnostic equipments, cabinet components and enclosures, home healthcare housings and monitoring, pumps, oxygenators as well as dental equipment housings.

“Trinseo’s EMERGE 9000 CR series not only meet the need for today’s medical housings to  withstand  powerful disinfectants  and  cleaners  that  can  attack  plastic  surfaces,  but  also provide   advanced   properties   required   by   manufacturers   and   moulders   for   a   better functionality, reliability and a prolonged lifecycle of their products.