Medical Textile-The Defense Guard During COVID-19
Introduction:
Medical textiles are also known as Healthcare Textiles. Medical Textiles is one of the most rapidly expanding sectors in the technical textile market. Advanced medical textiles are significantly developing area because of their major expansion in such fields like wound healing and controlled release, bandaging and pressure garments, implantable devices as well as medical devices, and development of new intelligent textile products.
The consumption of Medical Textiles worldwide was 1.5 million tons in 2000 and is growing at an annual rate of 4.6%. The Indian market size of medical textiles was estimated to be INR 14.8 billion in 2003-04 and is expected to grow to INR 23.3 billion by 2007-08. Market is expected to grow by 8% p.a.
Impact of Medical Textile during Corona:
Medical textile are act nowadays as the defense guard during COVID-19 around the world. have long been used in protective coverings, including gowns, coveralls, caps, and face coverings. In recent months, there has been much interest and activity from the healthcare industry, broader workforce, and general public regarding the use of protective coverings to reduce the risk of infection by the novel coronavirus (SARS-Cova-2). Consequently, there has been a sharp increase in demand for these products.
PPE has become a household term, but regulatory complexities and associated performance requirements are not commonly understood. OSHA defines PPE as “equipment worn to minimize exposure to hazards that cause serious workplace injuries and illnesses. Especially within the context of disease transmission, it is important to note that PPE is designed to protect the wearer, not necessarily others who may come into close proximity to the wearer.
In addition to pore size, the number of available pores can be affected by a number of fabric, yarn and fiber characteristics. In general, fabric modifications that increase the number of pores, while making them smaller should improve filtration performance. For instance, simply by increasing the thread count of a fabric, the spaces between yarns — fabric interstices — will be increased in number while made smaller in size. This should improve filtration efficiency. However, breathability may be negatively impacted as seen in the study above, where an effective increase in fabric interstices is achieved by doubling the fabric layers.
The Medical Chart:
The Medical Textile Equipment’s used in situation of COVID-19:
Facemasks: Face masks are made with non-woven fabric, which has better bacteria filtration and air permeability while remaining less slippery than woven cloth.
PPE kit for Covid19: Personal Protective Equipment’s (PPEs) are protective gears designed to safeguard the health of workers by minimizing the exposure to a biological agent.
Gowns: Gowns should cover the wearer’s back even when they bend over or sit. It considered as a very good medical textile equipment during this pandemic situation.
Coveralls: Coveralls can be worn in place of gowns. They provide better protection, but they also are more uncomfortable to most healthcare workers thanks to the added insulation.
Gloves: Nonsterile patient examination gloves can be used to treat coronavirus patients. These can include nitrile, natural, rubber, poly chloroprene, and vinyl gloves. Double gloving and extended length gloves are not considered necessary.
Eye protection: This can be a face shield or goggles. Reusable goggles and shields should be cleaned and disinfected after every use, and disposable types should be thrown out after every use. This should be removed before leaving the patient care area.
Conclusion: Treatments and Health Monitoring provides comprehensive coverage on smart textiles, the emerging and important materials that are finding applications in the fields of medicine and healthcare.
References:
https://textilelearner.blogspot.com/2012/02/introduction-of-medical-textiles.html
https://www.textileworld.com/textile-world/features/2020/05/textiles-the-coronavirus-sars-cov-2/
https://textilevaluechain.in/2020/04/22/covid19-nonwovens-in-medical-textiles/
https://www.fashionatingworld.com/textile
https://www.elsevier.com/books/advances-in-smart-medical-textiles/langenhove/978-1-78242-379-9
http://textilefocus.com/covid-19-textiles-technology/
https://www.magzter.com/article/Business/Textile-Value-Chain/Covid19-Nonwovens-In-Medical-Textiles
Writer: K. M. Fahim Istiaque
Instructor, Textile Engineering
Daffodil Polytechnic Institute
Bangladesh Skill Development Institute