How do you prevent fires in the operating room?
- Limit oxygen concentration and avoid nitrous oxide. Open oxygen delivery system. Oxygen during airway surgery. Avoid nitrous oxide.
- Manage fuels. Alcohol-based prep solutions. Management of drapes, towels, sponges, and gauzes. Management of organic material.
- Manage ignition sources.
What are the three overriding principles of operating room fire safety?
Three overriding principles of operating room fire safety are to prevent, and extinguish fires, and to evacuate persons at risk if necessary.
What is fire risk assessment in the operating room?
Assigning a fire risk score The assessment requires the surgical team to identify the 3 key elements that are necessary for a fire to start—the fire triangle: • heat • fuel • oxygen. nasal cannula) • available ignition source (ie, electrosurgery unit, laser, or fiberoptic light source).
What is the fire triangle in the operating room?
The three components of an operating room fire are present in virtually all surgical procedures: an oxidizer (oxygen, nitrous oxide), an ignition source (i.e., laser, “Bovie”), and a fuel.
What is the most common source of fire in an operating room?
The electrocautery (Bovie) is the most common ignition source of OR fires, and other sources include lasers, fiber optic light cables, argon beam coagulators, heated probes, drills and burrs, and defibrillator paddles or pads.
Are fire extinguishers required in operating rooms?
Most operating rooms are known to have flammable liquids, and a Class B fire extinguisher would be required. NFPA 10 says the travel distance to a Class B fire extinguisher is either 30 feet for low capacity extinguishers and low hazard areas, or 50 feet to moderate capacity extinguishers and low to moderate hazards.
What is the most common location for a patient fire in the operating room?
The most common sites of fires were the head, face, neck, and upper chest. Supplemental oxygen was also present in most cases.
How do you prevent injury during a laser procedure?
Patients’ eyes must be protected by either moistened eye pads (CO2 laser), or by goggles specific to laser wavelength. 3. Appropriate laser-protective eyewear should be available near the posted warning sign(s).
What Causes fire in Operating Room?
Surgical fires can occur any time all three of the following elements are present: Ignition source (e.g., electrosurgical units, lasers, and fiberoptic light sources) Fuel source (e.g., surgical drapes, alcohol-based skin preparation agents, the patient) Oxidizer (e.g., oxygen, nitrous oxide, room air)
Are fire extinguishers required in the operating room?
Most operating rooms are known to have flammable liquids, and a Class B fire extinguisher would be required. Install 10-lb Class 10-B:C CO2 portable fire extinguishers inside each OR. This will handle all Class B and Class C fires that may occur in the OR.
What are common sources of heat in the operating room?
The most common heat sources in the OR are electrosurgical equipment, such as electrosurgical units (ESUs) or electrocautery units, fiber-optic light sources and cables, and lasers. Lasers, ESUs, and high-speed drills can create incandescent sparks that can jump off the tissue target and ignite specific fuels.
What type of fire extinguisher should be used in an operating room?
