If you’re involved in providing care to the public, sterility is a huge issue. Now there’s a new 2013 Edition for BS EN 14476, “Chemical disinfectants and antiseptics. Quantitative suspension test for the evaluation of virucidal activity in the medical area. Test method and requirements (Phase 2/Step 1).” This is the European standard for determining the virucidal properties of a chemical disinfectant or antiseptic.
Such chemicals are used for cleaning surfaces and cloths in hospitals, nursing homes, nurseries, and other locations where public health issues are a concern. They can be distributed in the form of a spray or cleaning solution. You’ll find them in handrubs and handwashes, as well as products for baths for instrument disinfection and for laundering textiles. These chemicals are intended to kill viruses that can be present in the human body (see Annex A for an extensive list of viruses and the parts of the body where they can reside).
The last revision of the BS EN 14476 was back in 2007, when an amendment was issued for the 2005 Edition. Now the new 2013 Edition replaces that earlier document. The changes were issued to bring the standard up-to-date, to make the language clearer, and to generally bring it into line with other tests in this area. As you’ve already noticed, disinfection of textiles has been added to the scope of the standard. And an additional method was added to allow for the testing of ready-to-use products with a concentration higher than the previous 80%.
If you’ve got data generated by tests using the previous edition, don’t worry. The data is still valid so you don’t need to redo all your previous testing. And if you can’t find information in the standard regarding a particular application in the medical area, be assured that the committee is working on additional methods even as we speak.
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