Blood-containing aerosols generated by surgical techniques: a possible infectious hazard.

The aerosols generated in an operating room during surgery were simulated in the laboratory by using a variety of common surgical power tools. A Stryker bone saw, a Hall drill, and a Shea drill were used on bone, and a Bovie electrocautery was used in both the cutting and coagulation modes on tendon, all in the presence of a thin film of blood. A 10-stage, low-pressure cascade impactor was used to determine the particle size distribution of each aerosol, and Hemastix was used to assess the hemoglobin content of each particle size fraction.

AIDS and arthroscopic surgery.

There are an estimated 8 to 10 million people worldwide infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The true extent of infection in the population is unknown, and many are unaware of their HIV status. Arthroscopic and arthroscopically assisted surgery is less invasive and bloody than other orthopaedic procedures, and seemingly less hazardous to surgeons.