Search

Background: With the worldwide outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, an important question about virus transmission via contaminated surfaces is arising therefore, research is needed to prove the persistence of viable viruses on surfaces. The purpose of the study was to determine the level of surface contamination with SARS-CoV-2 in a university clinical center. Methods: A study of environmental viral contamination in the rooms of an acute COVID department was performed. Rapid qualitative antigen tests, real-time RT-PCR, and virus isolation in cell cultures were used for virus detection. Results: None of the taken samples were antigen positive. The SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in 10% of samples: one positive sample in an empty room after cleaning and disinfection nine positive samples in occupied rooms. No viable virus was recovered on cell cultures. Conclusions: In our research, the rapid antigen tests did not prove to be effective for environmental samples, but we were able to detect SARS-CoV-2 RNA in 10% of samples using the RT-PCR method. The highest proportion of PCR-positive samples was from unused items in occupied multi-bed rooms. No viable virus was detected, therefore, infection by surface transmission is unlikely, but it remains prudent to maintain strict hand and environmental hygiene and the use of personal protective equipment.

V članku je prikazan pregled in trendi svetovne proizvodnje tekstilnega tiska, razvoj brizgalnega tiska tekstilij, primerjava tehnologije brizgalnega in filmskega tiska tekstilij in stroškovna primerjava. Predstavljene so vrste sodobnih digitalnih tiskalnikov. Razložen je potek digitalnega oblikovanja vzorcev in način prenosa v klasični filmski tisk. This paper reviews the current and future trends of textile digital ink-jet printing, and compares the production costs of different ink-jet and screen printing technologies. Different types of modern ink-jet printers are discussed. The digital design process and the parameters for transferring ink-jet printing technology to screen printing processes are described in this paper.

Od postopkov nege tekstilij za zdravstvene ustanove in živilsko industrijo se zahteva razen odstranjevanja nečistoč tudi zagotavljanje ustrezne stopnje higiene. Ob klasičnem kombiniranem kemijsko-termičnem postopku razkuževanja se čedalje bolj uveljavlja tudi postopek nege tekstilij, ki ima osnovo v tehnologiji tekočega $CO_2$ ($LCO_2$). V dosedanjih raziskavah postopkov nege je bilo v središču zanimanja predvsem vrednotenje razkuževalnih učinkov, medtem ko so bili vplivi na okolje nekoliko potisnjeni v ozadje. Raziskava je bila osredotočena na primerjavo okoljskih vplivov, ki jih povzročata kemijsko-termičen in $CO_2$ postopek nege medicinskih tekstilij. Za vrednotenje razkuževalnega učinka so bili uporabljeni bioindikatorji, klasična in prototipna $LCO_2$ oprema za nego tekstilij, pralna, razkuževalna in pomožna sredstva ter oprema in metode za preskušanje. Opravljene so bile ekološke analize odpadnih pralnih vod kemijsko-termičnega razkuževalnega procesa v skladu z Uredbo o emisiji snovi pri odvajanju odpadne vode iz naprav za pranje in kemično čiščenje tekstilij (UL RS 41/2007). Izdelane so bile energetske in okoljske bilance za oba negovalna postopka, pri čemer je bila upoštevana metodologija ocene življenjskega cikla izdelka/storitve LCA, popisa stanja LCI ter ocena vplivov na okolje v času življenjskega cikla LCIA. Rezultati raziskave kažejo, da je porabljena energija za 1 kg opranih tekstilij pri enokopelnem postopku $LCO_2$ za 2800 kJ manjša kot pri kemijsko-termičnem. Ugotovljeno je bilo tudi, da klasičen kemijsko-termični postopek daje štirikrat višji indeks globalnega segrevanja (GWP$_{100}$) in indeks zakisljevanja (AP), torej sprošča tudi štirikrat več emisij toplogrednih plinov in plinov zakisljevanja kot enokopelni $LCO_2$ razkuževalni postopek nege tekstilij. The laundering procedures for health institutions and the food-processing industry must ensure the elimination of impurities and appropriate levels of hygiene. In addition to the classical combination of chemo-thermal disinfection procedures, the laundering procedure based on the liquid carbon dioxide ($LCO_2$) technology is becoming more and more assertive. In the previous studies on laundry care processes, the evaluations of disinfection effects have become prominent, while sadly the environmental impacts have remained in the background. The research focused on comparing the environment impacts caused by chemical-thermal and $CO_2$ laundering procedures regarding medical textiles. Bioindicators, classical and prototype $LCO_2$ equipment for the textile laundry, detergents, disinfectants and auxiliary agents, as well as the sampling equipment and sampling methods were used for the evaluation of disinfection effects. This paper introduces performed wastewater ecological analyses using a chemo-thermal procedure in accordance with the Slovenian regulation on the substance emission during the removal of wastewater from laundries and drycleaner's (Slovenian Official Gazette 41/2007). Energy and environmental balances for both laundering procedures were prepared. Life cycle assessment (LCA), life cycle inventories (LCI) and life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) methodologies were taken into account. The results of our investigation point to the fact that the energy used for 1 kg of textiles during one-bath $LCO_2$ procedure is in comparison with the chemo-thermal procedure lower by 2,800 kJ. It was also discovered that a classical chemo-thermal procedure has four times higher global warming potential (GWP$_{TGP}$) and acidification potential (AP) than the one-bath $LCO_2$ laundering procedure, regarding disinfection.

Uporaba sintetičnih gostil daje odlično globino barvnih tonov v reaktivnem tisku in hkrati predstavlja tudi zanimivo alternativo alginatom, ki se uporabljajo danes. Za uporabo teh sistemov je zelo pomembno dobiti natančne informacije o občutljivosti na strižno hitrost in na elektrolite. Viskozne in viskoelastične lastnosti tiskarskih barvnih gošč iz alginatnih in sintetičnih gostil ter njihovih mešanic smo raziskovali in primerjali z rezultati tiska. Ugotovili smo, da občutljivost sintetičnih gostil na elektrolite lahko uravnavamo z dodatkom alginata. Mešanice gostil kažejo lastnosti med sintetičnimi in alginatnimi gostili in predstavljajo zanimivo alternativo. The use of synthetic thickeners as thickening agents enables excellent colour yields in reactive printing and constitutes an interesting alternative to the alginates used up to now. For the application of these systems it is very important to get detailed information about the shear sensitivity and the sensitivity to electrolytes. The viscous and viscoelastic properties of printing pastes made of alginates, synthetic thickeners and their mixtures were investigated and correlated with the printing results. We can see that the sensitivity of synthetic thickeners to electrolytes can be regulated by additions of alginates. Mixtures show an intermediate behaviour between synthetic thickeners and alginates and can be identified as advanced materials.

S primarnimi učinki pranja tekstilij ugotavljamo čistilno moč pranja oz. sposobnost odstranjevanja madežev po enem ciklu pranja. Primarne in sekundarne učinke pranja (mehanske in fizikalno-kemijske modifikacije površine vlaken) uporabljamo za ugotavljanje kakovosti postopka pranja, vendar le kot pogoj za higieno bolnišničnih tekstilij. Osnovni namen pranja bolnišničnih tekstilij je vrnitev umazanih, okuženih tekstilij v čisto, sveže in razkuženo stanje brez pretiranih poškodb na tekstilijah za nadaljnjo uporabo. Izbrali smo pet najpogosteje uporabljenih programov pranja bolnišničnih tekstilij (programi pranja pižam, tekstilij s sumom okuženosti, brisač, operacijskih tekstilij in tetrapodlog) in ugotavljali primarne učinke pranja z EMPA-tkanino, artikel 103 z osmimi standardnimi madeži (beljen bombaž, saje/olje, kri, kakav, kri/mleko/saje, žveplovo barvilo, surov bombaž, rdeče vino). Ugotovili smo, da je kakovost pranja primerna v vseh preverjenih postopkih pranja. Primary laundering effects are used to determine the cleaning power of washing or the effectiveness of removing stains after one washing cycle. The primary and secondary laundering effects (mechanical and physical/chemical modifications on the fibre surface) are used to determine the quality of laundering, however, only as a precondition for the hygiene of hospital textiles. The basic purpose of of washing hospital textiles is to return dirty, infected textiles to a clean, fresh and disinfected state without excessive damage on the textiles for further use. Five most commonly used programmes for washing hospital textiles were chosen (program for pyjamas, textiles suspected for contamination, towels, surgical textiles and under-linen) and the primary washing effects were determined by using the EMPA-cloth, article 103 with eight standard stains (bleached cotton, soot/oil, blood, cocoa, blood/milk/soot, sulphur dye, raw cotton, red wine). It was found that the washing quality was adequate in all chosen laundering procedures.

Vsaka pralnica naj bi imela napravo za ionsko izmenjavo, torej napravo za mehčanje vode. Med delovanjem ionskega izmenjevalca se na površini sintetičnih smol/polimerov nalagajo mikroorganizmi, ki se razmnožujejo in tvorijo biofilm. Ko biofilm doseže kritično točko, se iz njega pričnejo mikroorganizmi izpirati v mehko vodo. V primeru, da proizvedena mehka voda kaže povečano obremenitev z mikroorganizmi, govorimo o biološkem onesnaževanju. Zaradi tega moramo ionski izmenjevalec redno nadzirati. Rast mikroorganizmov na površini ionskega izmenjevalca preprečimo s kontinuiranim kloriranjem. Če ugotovimo nastanek biofilma, ionski izmenjevalec dezinfeciramo z ustreznimi dezinfekcijskimi sredstvi. Priporoča se uporaba peroksiocetne kisline, saj so raziskave pokazale, da peroksiocetna kislina že v zelo majhni koncentraciji in krajšem času učinkovanja povzroči uničenje nastalega biofilma. V raziskavi smo preverili kakovost mehčane vode, ki vstopa v postopek pranja v štirih pralnicah bolnišničnih tekstilij, da bi ugotovili, all je voda biološko onesnažena, kar zmanjša kemo-termični razkuževalni učinek postopka pranja. Rezultate smo primerjali s priporočenimi zahtevami za kakovostno nego in higieno tekstilij RAL-GZ 992/2 za bolnišnične tekstilije. Each laundry should have its own ion exchange device that is a water softening plant. During the function of ion exchange microorganisms settle on the outer surface of synthetic resins/polymers and multiply thus forming a biofilm. When the biofilm reaches a critical point, the microorganisms begin to flush into softened water. In that case when softened water displays an increased bioburden, biofouling occurs. Therefore, regular control of ion exchangers is necessary. The growth of microorganisms on the surface of ion exchangers is prevented by continual chlorination. In the case of discovering the presence of biofilm, the ion exchanger isto be disinfected by appropriate disinfecting agents. The use of peroxyacetic acid is recommended because the research has shown that small concentrations and short action times of peroxy acetic acid causes the biofilm to be inactivated. In the research we examined the quality of softened water for washing in four laundries for hospital textiles to determine whether biofouling, which decreases the chemo-thermal disinfecting effect of the washing procedure, has occurred. The results were compared to the recommended values for quality textile care and hygiene according to RAL-GZ 992/2 for hospital textiles.

V raziskavi smo v tekstilni tovarni izbrali dve recepturi za barvanje bombažne tkanine z reaktivnimi barvili ter proučili količino in kakovost tekstilnih pomožnih sredstev. Recepture smo modificirali, da bi nevarne kemikalije nadomestili z ekološko prijaznejšimi produkti. KPK vrednosti so pokazale nižjo obremenitev izpiralnih odpadnih voda po barvanju bombaža z modificirano recepturo, kakor tudi višjo biorazgradljivost v primerjavi z izpiralnimi odpadnimi vodami po barvanju bombaža z nemodificirano recepturo, pri čemer je obstojnost barv ostala nespremenjena. Razen tega smo izvedli izboljšanje konvencionalnega izpiranja bombaža, barvanega z reaktivnimi barvili, po modificirani recepturi z uporabo inventivne tehnologije, imenovane "vroče pranje". Pri kontroli izpiralnega procesa se je pokazal prevladujoč vpliv temperature na lastnosti izpiranja barvila. Uporaba procesa "vročega pranja" po reaktivnem barvanju pomeni prihranek vode in časa ter izboljšanje barvnih obstojnosti. Two dyeing recipes from a textile factory were studied, focusing on the quantity and quality of the added textile auxiliaries. The recipes were modified to replace hazardous chemicals with environmentally-friendly products. The COD values indicated that wastewaters resulting from the wash-off process of cotton dyed with modified recipes have a lower waste water load and simultaneously a higher degradable capacity, with the same fastness properties as textiles dyed with the original recipes. Additionally, improvement in conventional washing was attained using an innovative rinsing technology, called "hot-washing", after cotton dyeing using a modified recipe. The temperature was a predominant influence on the removal properties of dyestuff and textile auxiliaries. Application of the 'hot-washing' process after reactive dyeing resulted in water and time savings, and an improvement in the fastness properties.

V pralnicah se ne moremo izogniti obstoju mikroorganizmov v nečistem delu, saj zaradi izvora tekstilij vstopi v postopek pranja veliko število mikroorganizmov zelo različnega izvora, od fekalnih mikroorganizmov iz posteljnine do okuženih tekstilij iz različnih oddelkov bolnišnic, ki lahko vsebujejo različne vrste patogenih bakterij, gliv in virusov. Ker so uporabniki bolnišničnih tekstilij običajno bolniki s šibkim imunskim sistemom, jih moramo zaščititi pred okužbami iz slabo opranih tekstilij, zato oprane bolnišnične tekstilij ne smejo vsebovati povzročiteljev bolezni. Čeprav je v prvi vrsti pomembno, da ima postopek pranja razkuževalni učinek, je zelo pomembno tudi, da pri nadaljnji obdelavi opranih tekstilij (sortiranje, likanje, zlaganje, pakiranje) ne pride do rekontaminacije opranih tekstilij zaradi neustrezne higiene v čistem delu pralnice. V raziskavi smo v petih pralnicah bolnišničnih tekstilij izvedli sanitarno-mikrobiološko preiskavo opranih tekstilij na različnih kritičnih kontrolnih točkah v čistem delu pralnice in rezultate primerjali s tolerančnimi vrednostmi za bolnišnične tekstilije, ki jih je izdal RAL, nemški inštitut za zagotavljanje kakovosti in izdajanje certifikatov, in temeljijo na predpisih Robert-Koch inštituta. Iz rezultatov je razvidno, da je doseganje primerne stopnje higiene tekstilij v prvi vrsti odvisno od razkuževalnega učinka postopka pranja, kakor tudi od rednih ukrepov čiščenja in razkuževanja vseh površin, prostorov, tehnične opreme itd., ki pridejo v stik z opranimi tekstilijami in rednega izobraževanja osebja o pravilni higieni rok pri vzdrževanju higiene v pralnici. In the unclean part of laundries it is impossible to avoid microorganisms. Textiles, which come into laundries from different hospital wards, contain a great number of microorganisms of various origins - from fecal microorganisms in bed linen to various types of pathogenic bacteria, fungi and viruses contained in contaminated textiles. Since the users of hospital textiles are usually the patients with weak immunity system, they should be protected against infections from poorly washed textiles, which means that the washed hospital textiles should not contain any pathogenic bacteria or viruses. Although disinfectant effect of the washing process is most important, it is also very important to avoid re-contamination because of poor hygiene in further processes of manipulation (sorting, ironing, folding, packing) in the clean part of a laundry. Sanitary-microbiologic testing of washed textiles was carried out in five laundries at various critical control points in the clean part and the results were compared with the tolerance values for hospital textiles issued by RAL, the German Institute for quality assurance and certification on the basis of prescriptions of the Robert-Koch Institute. The results show that the disinfectant effect of washing process is most important for achieving a suitable degree of textiles hygiene, however, regular cleaning and disinfecting of all surfaces, rooms, technical equipment etc. which come into contact with washed textiles and constant education of staff about proper hygiene of hands are very important as well.

Industrijske in obrtne pralnice onesnažujejo okolje z odpadno vodo, ki nastane po pranju različnih vrst perila. Predpisi in uredbe za odvajanje odpadnih voda iz industrijskih in obrtnih pralnic v komunalne čistilne naprave ali pa iztok neposredno v reko so čedalje strožji, kar morajo upoštevati tudi pralnice. Sedanje sodobne čistilne naprave vključujejo poleg čiščenja vode še možnost ponovne uporabe vode. Za dosego tega cilja je najprimernejša membranska filtracija. V prispevku smo podrobno prikazali proces čiščenja vode iz pralnice z ultrafiltracijo in reverzno osmozo. Rezultati analiz odpadne vode so pokazali, da so se vsi merjeni parametri znižali v tolikšni meri, da ima voda zelo visoko kakovost in z njenim recikliranjem prihranimo do 90 % sveže vode. Industrial laundries pollute the environment with wastewater. In order to meet the legislation requirements laundry wastewaters have to be treated properly. The most promising approach to laundry wastewater treatment is membrane ultrafiltration followed by reverse osmosis, a procedure that allows subsequent water recycling. The paper presents a detailed analysis of laundry wastewater after membrane ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis. The results show a great improvement in the quality of wastewater, which enables recycling, As a result, up to 90% of fresh water can be saved.

Textiles are a common material in healthcare facilities therefore it is important that they do not pose as a vehicle for the transfer of pathogens to patients or hospital workers. During the course of use hospital textiles become contaminated and laundering is necessary. Laundering of healthcare textiles is most commonly adequate, but in some instances, due to inappropriate disinfection or subsequent recontamination, the textiles may become a contaminated inanimate surface with the possibility to transfer pathogens. In this review we searched the published literature in order to answer four review questions: (1) Are there any reports on the survival of microorganisms on hospital textiles after laundering? (2) Are there any reports that indicate the presence of microorganisms on hospital textiles during use? (3) Are there any reports that microorganisms on textiles are a possible source infection of patients? (4) Are there any reports that microorganisms on textiles are a possible source infection for healthcare workers?

Introduction: Although the most common vehicle for transmission of health-care acquired infections is the personto- person transmission route, the role of environment should not be ignored and hospital linen may contribute to the spreading of nosocomial infections. The contact plate method and swabbing are common methods for sampling microorganisms on textiles however, results are available after two days as they are based on incubation followed by phenotypeidentification. An important alternative is using quick wash-off methods followed by PCR detection, which shortens the identification process from two days to a few hours. Methods: The following test microorganisms at different concentrations were inoculated onto textile swatches and dried overnight: Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Clostridium difficile. RODAC plate sampling as well as a non-destructive wash-off method for capturing microorganisms from the textilesusing a Morapex device were used. The elution suspension from the Morapex device was used for two methods. In the first method, classical incubation on selective media followed by phenotypic identification was used and in the second method DNA was extracted from the elution suspension followed by amplification and agarose gel electrophoresis to visualize amplified products. Conclusions: All chosen bacteria were found using all methods. However, the most sensitive proved to be detection using PCR amplification as we detected the sample with initial concentration of 102 cfu/mL inoculated onto the textile surface before drying. The final detectablerecovered bacterial concentration on textiles was up to 10 cfu/mL. Izhodišča: Čeprav so bolniki ali osebje najpogostejši vir bolnišnično pridobljenih okužb, ne smemo zanemariti vloge okolja, med katere sodijo bolnišnične tekstilije, ki lahko prispevajo k širitvi bolnišničnih okužb. Najpogostejši metodi vzorčenja mikroorganizmov na tekstilijah sta vzorčenje s kontaktnimi ploščami in z brisi, vendar so izsledki na voljo čez dva dni, ker so osnovani na fenotipski identifikaciji po inkubaciji vzorca na gojiščih. Pomembna alternativa so metode eluiranja, ki jim sledi detekcija s PCR-metodo,kar skrajša proces identifikacije z dveh dni na nekaj ur. Metode: Na tekstilne vzorce smo pri različnih koncentracijah nanesli naslednje izbranemikroorganizme - Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Clostridium difficile - in jih sušili čez noč. Iz tekstilnih vzorcev smo nato zajeli mikroorganizme z vzorčenjem sploščicami RODAC kakor tudi z nedestruktivno metodo eluiranja z aparatom Morapex. Eluirano suspenzijo iz aparata Morapex smo nadalje uporabili za dve metodi. Pri prvi metodi smo eluat inkubirali na selektivna gojišča, čemur je sledila fenotipska identifikacija, pri drugi metodi pa smo iz eluata ekstrahirali DNK in ga pomnožili ter nato s pomnoženimi produkti izvedli agarozno gelsko elektroforezo. Zaključki: Vse mikroorganizme smo zaznali z vsemi metodami, vendar je bila najobčutljivejša metoda pomnoževanje DNK s PCR-metodo, saj smo po inkubaciji zaznali tudi vzorec z začetno koncentracijo 102 cfu/mL bakterijske suspenzije, inokulirane na tekstilno površino pred sušenjem. Končna koncentracija bakterijske suspenzije, ki smo jo zaznali na tekstilnem vzorcu, je bila do 10 cfu/mL.

Introduction: Clinical practice is crucial in nursing education. It is important that graduates have gained professional competences to perform independent, humane, responsible and autonomous nursing care. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the full-time and part-time nursing students have acquired adequate competences to independently perform nursing tasks and interventions. Methods: A descriptive observational method was employed. A semi-structured questionnaire was completed by 134 third-year nursing students. The survey was conducted between January and March 2012. The collected data were processed and analysed by descriptive and bivariate statistics (chi-square test, t-test). Results: Statistically significant differences in self-assessment of competences among full-time and part-time students were identified in the cluster of ethical practice competences ( R =3.6, IZR =3.5, t = 2.63, p = 0.010) and legal practice ( R=3.3, IZR=3.1, t = 2.69, p = 0.008). Competences with ratings less than 80 % were identified in the competences "regularly reviews and revises the nursing care plan in collaboration with other members of the nursing team and patients" (hci-square = 0.27, p = 0.654) and "delegating tasks to others according to their professional abilities, knowledge and experience" (chi-square = 1.793, p = 0.181). Discussion and conclusion: Findings of this study reveal that the students demonstrate highest level of competence in inter-professional competences of healthcare, quality improvement and continuing education. It is suggested that similar surveys are repeated among the third-year students at the end of the academic year. Uvod: Klinično usposabljanje študentov zdravstvene nege je ključnega pomena. Pomembno je, da so diplomanti usposobljeni za samostojno, humano, odgovorno in avtonomno izvajanje zdravstvene nege. Namen raziskave je bil ugotoviti usposobljenost študentov na rednem in izrednem študiju zdravstvene nege za samostojno izvajanje zdravstvene nege. Metode: Izvedena je bila deskriptivna opazovalna raziskava. Podatki so bili zbrani z delno strukturiranim vprašalnikom na vzorcu 134 študentov tretjega letnika študijskega programa prve stopnje Zdravstvena nega. Raziskava je potekala od januarja do marca 2012. Za analizo sta bili uporabljeni deskriptivna statistika in bivariatna analiza (test hi-kvadrat, t-test). Rezultati: Statistično pomembne razlike v samooceni usposobljenosti med študenti rednega in izrednega študija so se pokazale pri etični praksi ( R =3,6, IZR =3,5, t = 2,63, p = 0,010) in pravni praksi ( R=3,3, IZR=3,1, t = 2,69, p = 0,008). Ugotovljena je bila manj kot 80% usposobljenost pri kompetencah "redno pregledujem in popravljam negovalni načrt v sodelovanju z drugimi člani negovalnega tima in pacienti" (hi-kvadrat = 0,27, p = 0,654) in "delegiram naloge glede na usposobljenost, strokovno znanje in izkušnje" (hi-kvadrat = 1,793, p = 0,181). Diskusija in zaključek: Raziskava je pokazala, da so študenti najbolje usposobljeni za medpoklicno zdravstveno varstvo, izboljševanje kakovosti in nadaljnje izobraževanje. Raziskavo bi bilo treba opraviti vsako študijsko leto ob zaključku tretjega letnika.

Protective clothing is required in the food-processing industry, to protect workers from contamination by bacteria, fungi, viruses, prions etc. contained in the secretions and raw meat of slaughtered animals, and to protect the meat from being contaminated by microorganisms carried by the workers. It is well-understood that textiles are a control point (CP), and must be appropriately cleaned and disinfected in order to prevent biocontamination. Although the laundering procedure itself is important for achieving disinfection, it is also essential to maintain an appropriate hygiene level in the laundry, in order to prevent recontamination of textiles by environmental viable microorganisms. In this study, a sanitary-microbiologicalanalysis was carried out in selected CPs in two laundries. Chemo-thermal washing efficiency was determined by evaluating the anti-bacterial effect against Enterococcus faecium and Staphylococcus aureus. The hygienic state of the laundries was determined by evaluating the number and type of microorganisms at selected CPs throughout the whole laundering procedure. The results indicated that the sanitary condition of both laundries did not reach the required levels and that several microbes were resistant to cleaning and disinfecting agents. It is obvious from the results that achievement of an appropriate hygiene level during laundering textiles from the food processing industry requires the implementation of appropriate corrective monitoring measures. Na indústria de alimentos é necessário o uso de roupas de proteção, para proteger os trabalhadores da contaminação por bactérias, fungos, virus, prions, etc, encontrados nas secreções e carne dos animais abatidos, assim como proteger a carne da contaminação com microrganismos carreados pelos trabalhadores. Os têxteis são um Ponto de Controle (PC), e devem ser limpos e desinfetados de forma adequada para prevenir a biocontaminação. Embora o processo de lavagem seja importante para obter a desinfecção, é também essencial manter um nível apropriado de higiene dentro da lavanderia para prevenir recontaminação dos têxteis com microrganismos do ambiente. Nesse trabalho, realizou-se uma análise microbiológica de Pontos Críticos de duas lavanderias. A eficiência da lavagem termoquímica foi determinada através da análise do efeito antibacteriano contra Enterococcus faecium e Staphylococcus aureus. A higiene nas lavanderias foi avaliada através da determinação do número e tipos de microrganismos presentes em PCs selecionados no processo de lavagem. Os resultados indicaram que as condições de higiene nas duas lavanderias não atingiram os níveis necessários, e que vários microrganismos apresentaram resistência aos agentes sanificantes e de limpeza, indicando a necessidade de implementação de medidas corretivas apropriadas.

The goal of every hospital laundry is to maintain and constantly improve its services of washing soiled, infected textiles to a clean, fresh and disinfected state. Laundered hospital textiles should not contain microorganisms that cause diseases because their users are patients with an impaired immune system and should therefore be protected from infections from inappropriately washed textiles. It is most important that the laundering procedure has an anti-microbial effect, especially when washing hospital textiles that contain many kinds of pathogenic bacteria, fungi and viruses, and, at the same time does not cause excessive damage on the washed textiles. The laundering of textiles is often taken for granted, but not uncommonly seems to be the source of infection outbreaks. Most people assume that laundry returned to them is in fact clean and therefore safe, although the dirt may certainly have been removed, it is far from sterile and experience encourages all infection control teams to take laundering very seriously in outbreaks that seem to have no obvious cause. In our research we compared different low temperature laundering procedures and tested the disinfection efficiency common using biomonitors (Enterococcus faecium and Staphylococcus aureus) and novel laundering detergents and disinfecting agents. It was found that the procedures achieved an appropriate disinfection effect thus proving that ecological low temperature laundering procedures are adequate for hospital textiles.

The four basic factors in the Sinner cycle (mechanical agitation, duration, temperature and chemistry) are equally distributed in the case of a normal washing process. Process conditions generally contribute more to fabric damage than usage or wear. In this study standard cotton fabrics were frequently washed in the industrial conditions with linen from kitchen, restaurant, hotel and bed-wear-old peoples home. Different washing conditions were applied varyng washing agents, bleaches, disinfecting agents as well as temperature, duration and bath ratio in the washing machines. The evaluation of laundering effects was based on the testing of damages (loss of tearing strength, depolymerization), greying and color change (reduced whiteness by soil redeposition and color change by dye transfer and impact of fluorescent whitening agents) and incrustations (deposits of inorganic and organic compounds). During frequent cycles the surface modification is a result of fibre swelling capacity superimposed by mechanical agitation in the alkaline detergent bath. The new approach to washing performance was done through surface characterization monitored by streaming potential and scanning microscopy methods.

The success of textile fibre and fabrics processing strongly depends on their surface properties. Not only the specific functionalization of high-performance textiles, but also the traditional applications of dyestuffs, optical brighteners or finishing agents require knowledge of the physics and chemistry of the fibre surface and its interaction with the environment. The surface charge is a crucial parameter for the enhancement or suppression of the adsorption of the accepted or undesirable components such as surfactants or dyestuff as well as proteins or simply dust particles. The streaming potential method has been applied for many years to access necessary information about changes in the surface charge of differently treated textiles. However, the usefulness of this measuring technique is still underestimated. This paper discusses the concept of zeta potential as an indicator of textiles surface chemistry. Application of the streaming potential method covers the characterization of different treatment of cotton fabrics. Furthermore, a study was made on any influence by the soiling and washing of cotton fabrics on the zeta potential.

Laundered hospital textiles should not contain micro organisms that cause diseases because their users are patients with a low immune system and should therefore be protected from infections from inappropriately washed textiles. It is most important that the laundering procedure has an anti-microbial effect, especially when washing hospital textiles that contain many kinds of pathogenic bacteria, fungi and viruses, and, at the same time does not cause excessive damage on the washed textiles. Recent studies confirm the increase of nosocomial infections and microbial resistance and that one of the possible causes are infected textiles due to inappropriate laundering procedures. Most Slovenian laundries use thermal laundering procedures with high energy and water consumption to disinfect hospital textiles. In addition to this fact, there is an increasing number of hospital textiles composed of cotton/polyester blends which cannot endure high temperatures of thermal disinfection. On the other hand, decreasing the temperature of laundering procedures enhances the possibility of pathogenic microorganisms to survive the laundering procedure. In our research we determined the antimicrobial laundering effect by simulating a common laundering procedure for hospital textiles in the laboratory washing machine at different temperatures by the use of the following indicator bacteria: Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterobacter aerogenes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Artificial sweat was used as a substrate for simulating human excrements and was inoculated together with the chosen microorganisms onto cotton pieces to simulate real laundering conditions. It was found that all bacteria survived at 60 °C, but no microorganisms were found at 75°C.

Istražen je utjecaj koncentracije praškastog i tekućeg deterdženta na primarni učinak u pranju raznolikih zaprljanja na pamučnim i poliester/pamuk tkaninama. Rezultati učinkovitosti pranja s ovim deterdžentima su izraženi mjerenjem remisije na zaprljanim i opranim tkaninama kao i mjerenjem bjeline osnovne tkanine. Analizirana je i otpadna voda radi usporedbe parametara kvalitete otpadne vode nakon pranja s tekućim i praškastim deterdžentima. U tu svrhu je određen pH, sadržaj anionskih tenzida, AOX, sadržaj fosfata i klora, te KPK i BPK5. Bolji primarni učinak u ovim uvjetima pranja je pokazao praškasti deterdžent. Parametri kvalitete otpadne vode nakon pranja tekućim deterdžentima u potpunosti zadovoljavaju uredbe Republike Hrvatske i Republike Slovenije

Udgivelsesdato: FEB

The objective of laundering is to return soiled textiles to a clean, hygienic and ready-for-use state with minimal damage influenced by chemical and mechanical action. Chemical wear of the cellulose in cotton cloth is caused by the action of chemical agents during the laundering process and leads to changes in the intrinsic properties of the fibres. The consequence of chemical wear is the reduction in the degree of polymerization of the cellulose constituent. In our research we investigated the influence of oxidising agents on the chemical wear of test cotton fabrics (DIN 53919) laundered in different industrial and hospital laundries. Different standard solvents for cellulose: copper tetra-amine hydroxide, copper (II) ethylene-diamine and iron (III) tartaric acid sodium complex were applied in the inter-laboratory testing. The results show that all three methods are equivalent since the results obtained are relatively comparable.