I walk down a narrow hallway into the microbiology laboratory on my college campus. I am met outside of the door by the professor. He proceeds to set the guidelines for proper safety in the lab. The number one thing he says and repeats is the concept of asepsis or the absence of microorganisms. After I finally get the okay to walk through the door, ditching my things there as I continue into the lab. Sanitization of your hands and the lab bench are the priority, immediately followed by placing sterile gloves and a lab coat on. Why is this sterilization necessary? Microorganisms, or microbes, are everywhere and can/will contaminate everything. But what is the use of this sterilization and aseptic technique outside of the microbiology lab?
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He also began to notice a number of physicians who passed on infection to their patients after surgery. Lister used Pasteur’s ideas, combined with his own to form the aseptic technique. Lister knew about phenol being used as a disinfectant to kill bacteria, so he began to use it as a wound cleanser as well as to clean his surgical instruments. Jessney noted that, “Surgical instruments were never cleaned thoroughly with anything more than a wipe. Patients were seldom washed of dirt and surgeons rarely washed their hands. For some, bloodstains were seen as trophies and a mark of prestige” (107). The invention of this technique by Lister changed the spread of infection within the hospital. According to Dennis Pitt MD, “Lister changed the treatment of compound fractures from amputation to limb preservation and opened the way for abdominal and other intracavity surgery” (8). Aseptic technique single handedly was able to help the world with the fight of disease and spread of infection. The sheer amount of lives saved since then is
He also began to notice a number of physicians who passed on infection to their patients after surgery. Lister used Pasteur’s ideas, combined with his own to form the aseptic technique. Lister knew about phenol being used as a disinfectant to kill bacteria, so he began to use it as a wound cleanser as well as to clean his surgical instruments. Jessney noted that, “Surgical instruments were never cleaned thoroughly with anything more than a wipe. Patients were seldom washed of dirt and surgeons rarely washed their hands. For some, bloodstains were seen as trophies and a mark of prestige” (107). The invention of this technique by Lister changed the spread of infection within the hospital. According to Dennis Pitt MD, “Lister changed the treatment of compound fractures from amputation to limb preservation and opened the way for abdominal and other intracavity surgery” (8). Aseptic technique single handedly was able to help the world with the fight of disease and spread of infection. The sheer amount of lives saved since then is