Demonstration and Mitigation of Aerosol and Particle Dispersion During Mastoidectomy Relevant to the COVID-19 Era.

ABSTRACT:

Background

COVID-19 has become a global pandemic with a dramatic impact on healthcare systems. Concern for viral transmission necessitates the investigation of otologic procedures that use high-speed drilling instruments, including mastoidectomy, which we hypothesized to be an aerosol-generating procedure.

Methods

Mastoidectomy with a high-speed drill was simulated using fresh-frozen cadaveric heads with fluorescein solution injected into the mastoid air cells. Specimens were drilled for 1-minute durations in test conditions with and without a microscope. A barrier drape was fashioned from a commercially available drape (the OtoTent). Dispersed particulate matter was quantified in segments of an octagonal test grid measuring 60 cm in radius.

Results

Drilling without a

SUBMITTER: Chen JX 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7497894 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature