内容简介

This key resource aims to provide a concise but clear and comprehensive account of the principles and current practices of sterilization, disinfection and infection control.
　　Sterilization: Included in the third edition are the low temperature sterilization technologies based on gas plasma but also incorporating contributions from vapour phase hydrogen peroxide and peracetic acid. Decontamination by vapour phase　hydrogen peroxide, as used in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, is described, as is the application of a self-contained liquid peracetic acid system to the decontamination of flexible endoscopes.
　　Disinfection: Results of recent investigations into the heat resistance of bacterial spores are discussed, along with recognition of the inadequacy of some currently recommended inactivation procedures for the extraordinarily resistant prions. The prevalence of biofilm formation and its importance in protecting entrained microorganisms from the action of chemical disinfectants is also presented.
　　Infection Control: The infection control content has been both updated and upgraded.Standard Precautions have displaced Universal Precautions and include recommendations for the control of emerging antibiotic resistant bacteria and bacterial infections such as vancomycin resistant enterococci and nosocomial tuberculosis.
　　References are made throughout the text to recent revisions of many National Standards.International Standards now apply to sterilization by radiation and ethylene oxide and to the classification of airborne particles in cleanrooms.
　　This authoritative work provides a resource for those involved in, or responsible for, the provision of sterile supplies or services and the apphcation of the principles and practices of infection and contamination control. It also meets the requirements of tertiary education for health care professionals and students of applied microbiology.