A method is provided for vaporized hydrogen peroxide cleaning of a chamber. The method includes altering a temperature of air in the chamber from an initial temperature to a sterilization temperature over a first time period. The method also includes injecting vaporized hydrogen peroxide into air in the chamber to alter a relative humidity of hydrogen peroxide vapor in the chamber to a sterilization level over the first time period. The method also includes maintaining the temperature at the sterilization temperature and the relative humidity at the sterilization level over a second time period. The method also includes reducing the relative humidity from the sterilization level to a safe level over a third time period. In one embodiment, the method is provided for vaporized hydrogen peroxide cleaning of an interior chamber of an incubation container. In other embodiments, the incubation chamber featured in the method is provided.

A decontamination rack is particularly suitable for decontaminating medical devices, such as endoscopes, for being designed to minimize shadowed surface area. The decontamination rack may be provided with internal channels through which a decontamination fluid may be supplied to the locations where a device contacts decontamination rack. These locations may comprise receiving areas having ejection ports with flexible nozzles disposed therein. The device may be disposed atop the nozzles such that the decontamination fluid exits the nozzles to impinge directly on those portions of the device that rest upon the nozzles. The use of the decontamination rack promotes improved or complete coverage of exposed external surfaces of the device with the decontamination fluid because decontamination fluid may be ejected into the receiving area to lift the device at the shadowed surface.

A method of operating a sterilizer includes imaging a load of instruments to obtain an optical image and/or thermal image of the load, and selecting a sterilization cycle to be performed by the sterilizer based on one or more characteristics of the load determined from the image of the load. The characteristics may include the number of instruments, the presence of a diffusion-restricted space, the volume of the load, and the temperature of the load. The method may further include adjusting the sterilization cycle based on the characteristics of the load.

A disinfection system that provides homogenous UV light output. The system can utilize a sensor system to detect proper use provide user feedback on safety and functional operation. By tracking cumulative dosage of low energy UV-C the system can disinfect without violating safety exposure standards The system can automatically provide a disinfection dose according to the type and length of body contact device the disinfection device is mounted to, while tracking operational details. The system can include crypto security that enables a safer ecosystem and HIPAA compliant statistic sharing of operational parameters.

The invention relates to highly effective disinfecting or sterilising cloths with chlorine dioxide as the main active ingredient. For this, the chlorine dioxide is only generated shortly before use by bringing a cloth impregnated with a chlorite or chlorate salt in contact with a clearly defined amount of a suitable activation agent that is fluid or dissolved or admixed in a fluid, and prepackaged as a single dose, for the generation of chlorine dioxide. In a preferred embodiment, the impregnated cloth and the activation fluid are packaged in a common packaging unit and the activation occurs by breaking through a barrier separating the cloth or the cloths and the activation fluid. In a further preferred embodiment, the packaging is a moulded part having two packaging spaces separated from one another by removable barriers, which can be converted into a moulded part with only one chamber via simple pressure in one direction. The activation fluid or the disinfecting cloth can contain further substances, such as the pH-value-controlling substances, surfactants, guanidine derivatives, aldehydes, phenoxyethanols, phosphate esters, alcohols, sulfoxides, etc. Preferably, the disinfecting cloth according to the invention is used for disinfecting and/or sterilising medical instruments and/or medical products and/or surfaces.

A system for sterilizing a drug delivery device includes a drug delivery device having a first self-healing seal configured to seal a fluid reservoir disposed within the drug delivery device. A sealable container is configured to receive the drug delivery device therein. The sealable container has a base portion and a cover portion. The cover portion has a second self-healing seal positioned to align with the first self-healing seal when the drug delivery device is disposed within the sealable container. A fill port includes a fill path, the fill path being configured to pass through the first and second self-healing seals to fluidly couple the fill port to the reservoir of the drug delivery device. Other systems, methods, and devices of sterilization are also disclosed.

A cleaning and/or disinfecting device, including: a rinsing container having a rinsing chamber, the rinsing container having a loading opening for loading with washware to be cleaned; a rinsing chamber door, by which the loading opening can be closed in a fluid-tight manner, wherein the rinsing chamber door is a lift door configured to be displaceable translationally in a height direction of the rinsing container; and a drip collector arranged below the rinsing container in the height direction, the drip collector being configured to be displaced translationally in a direction running transversely to the height direction of the rinsing container, the drip collector being configured to be transitioned from a non-use position overlapping with the rinsing container to a use position protruding past the rinsing container on a loading opening side and from the use position back to the non-use position.

Disclosed embodiments can pertain to process indicator enhancements. A process indicator can include a dye material that has electrical properties such as conductivity and capacitance that can be employed to determine whether observed conditions are acceptable or not to sterilize medical equipment. Furthermore, the indicators can employ amplification, a specialized antenna, or both to allow signals, such as an electronic property value, to be communicated through sterilization containers that can shield or degrade signals. A number and location of indicators can also be determined and utilized to assist in visual inspection of the indicators as well as automatic evaluation.

A sterilization system for sterilizing an article is disclosed. The sterilization system may include a hydrogen peroxide generation system configured to generate hydrogen peroxide, a hydroxyl generation system configured to produce a flow of hydroxyl radicals that causes deterioration of the hydrogen peroxide to produce hydroxyl ions, and a sterilization chamber configured to expose the article to the hydroxyl ions to sterilize the article. Additionally, methods for sterilizing articles are disclosed. Those methods may include generating hydrogen peroxide, producing a flow of hydroxyl radicals that causes deterioration of the hydrogen peroxide to produce hydroxyl ions, and exposing the article to the hydroxyl ions to sterilize the article.

A disposable cleaning unit is described herein including an inner receptacle and an outer receptacle.