• May 20, 2022
• Guarddent
• 0

How to choose the right surgical/isolation gown:

Gowns are personal protective apparel to protect healthcare patients and personnel from the transfer of microorganisms, body fluids, and particulate material.  They as the second-most-used piece of PPE, following gloves, in the healthcare setting.

As always when purchasing from other nations, it is crucial that you are getting product from a reliable, valid, and quality source. Broadly, there are three key considerations to have when purchasing isolation gowns:

1: The Barrier Protection Levels

The barrier protection levels of gowns and other protective apparel intended for use in health care facilities and specifies test methods and performance results necessary to verify and validate that the gown provides the newly defined levels of protection:

• Level 1: Minimal risk, to be used, for example, during basic care, standard isolation, cover gown for visitors, or in a standard medical unit
• Level 2: Low risk, to be used, for example, during blood draw, suturing, in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), or a pathology lab
• Level 3: Moderate risk, to be used, for example, during arterial blood draw, inserting an Intravenous (IV) line, in the Emergency Room, or for trauma cases
• Level 4: High risk, to be used, for example, during long, fluid intense procedures, surgery,  when pathogen resistance is needed or infectious diseases are suspected (non-airborne)

2: The material of the gown

PP+PE Material: This is the basic level of material. The PP stands for Polypropylene which is a thermoplastic often used in packaging and for items such as cling wrap and sandwich bags, it is strong and can generally withstand high temperatures. The polypropylene is then coated with PE (polyethylene). Polyethylene is also a thermoplastic very similar to polypropylene and is used for items such as garbage bags and squeezable bottles. The PE coating offers an extra barrier for chemical resistance.

SMS Material: This is a three layered tri-laminated material. The acronym simply stands for Spunbond, meltblown, spunbond. Level 3 and 4 gowns sometimes have extra letters to the acronym, which simply signify additional layers of material (i.e. SMMS, SSMMS and SMMMS). Both spunbonds and meltblowns are types of polypropylene.

3: Sterile or Non-Sterile

Sterile -surgical gown

Surgical isolation gowns, like surgical gowns, are regulated by the FDA as a Class II medical device that requires a 510(k) premarket notification. All areas of the surgical isolation gown except bindings, cuffs, and hems are considered critical zones of protection and must meet the highest liquid barrier protection level for which the gown is rated.  The fabric of the surgical isolation gown should cover as much of the body as is appropriate for the intended use.

Non-Sterile -isolation gown

Non-surgical gowns are Class I devices (exempt from premarket review) intended to protect the wearer from the transfer of microorganisms and body fluids in low or minimal risk patient isolation situations. Non-surgical gowns are not worn during surgical procedures, invasive procedures, or when there is a medium to high risk of contamination. 

Where to buy surgical/isolation gown

Our manufacturing base of medical disposable items has 3 cleanings enclosed workshops which is around 20,000m3, skilled workers are more than 120, several full-automatic production lines, and 50 sets of sewing machines with approved ISO 13485 and CE certificate. It is mainly producing face masks, coverall, isolation gowns, lab coats, bouffant caps, clip caps, bed sheets, headrest covers, sleeve covers, shoe covers, ear machine covers, apron, and so on. 

If you are struggling to identify the right gowns, source the specific type you require, obtain required quantities, or are otherwise interested in our gowns, then please get in touch with Guarddent