What Are the Precautions for Using Cotton Swabs?

General families do not use many cotton swabs at ordinary times, and there is no condition to re-sterilize the remaining cotton swabs 24 hours after opening.

Ⅰ. How to use cotton swabs?

Natural cotton swabs are not only widely used, but also have good bending resistance. The rod should be able to withstand 100g external force without permanent deformation or breaking. So, what is the correct way to use cotton swabs?

1. The cotton swab can be used after opening the bag.

2. Take out the cotton swab from the end of the wooden pole. If you take it out from the cotton end, the bacteria on your hands will contaminate the sterile cotton.

3. Medical cotton swabs can directly treat wounds. But note that the cotton swabs should be stored in a room with a relative humidity not exceeding 80%, no corrosive gas and good ventilation, and avoid high temperature. Medical environmental protection cotton swabs generally directly contact the patient's wound, and have relatively high requirements for the sterilization process. In addition, for the selection of absorbent cotton raw materials for making cotton swabs, raw materials that meet the requirements of national standards and industry standards must be selected. There is also the requirement for the quality of the rods, whether it is plastic rods, paper rods or wooden rods, they should meet the specified requirements and be able to withstand a certain external force without permanent deformation or breaking.

4. Household cotton swabs generally do not deal with human wounds, but are only suitable for general skin cleaning. When using household cotton swabs to clean the baby's body, pay attention to operating when the baby is quiet, so as to prevent the baby from being poked by the cotton swab.

Ⅱ. Precautions for using cotton swabs

1. Pay attention to the shelf life

Cotton swabs from hospitals are mostly packed in double-layer paper. This kind of cotton swab is sterilized by high temperature and high pressure. In the unopened state, the shelf life is generally two weeks. However, in humid areas in the south, or during the rainy season in spring, the paper is prone to moisture, allowing bacteria to penetrate into the packaging. Therefore, the shelf life of cotton swabs is likely to be only about one week at this time.

2. It is very important to save cotton swabs

When storing cotton swabs, ensure that the packaging is airtight, and also note that the cotton swabs should be stored in a room with a relative humidity not exceeding 80%, no corrosive gases, and good ventilation, avoiding high temperatures.

3. Do not use household cotton swabs for wound disinfection

General families do not use many cotton swabs at ordinary times, and there is no condition to re-sterilize the remaining cotton swabs 24 hours after opening. Therefore, it is recommended to use those cotton swabs as ordinary cosmetic cotton swabs, or discard them, and never use them for wound treatment, especially for babies.

Sterile cotton swabs are necessary supplies for skin disinfection. Once contaminated, the wound may be infected. Some people think that anyway, cotton swabs should be dipped in alcohol, iodophor and other disinfectants, and a little bacteria is not a problem. They do not know that disinfection and sterilization are two different concepts. Disinfection is to kill pathogenic microorganisms on objects; sterilization is to completely kill all pathogenic and non-pathogenic microorganisms on objects, including spores. Sterilization includes disinfection, but disinfection cannot replace sterilization. That is to say, although alcohol, iodophor and other disinfectants can kill pathogenic microorganisms, if the cotton swab is not sterile but contains microorganisms such as spores, the disinfectant will have nothing to do with it, and even the disinfectant will kill it. So polluted. Therefore, ensuring the sterility of cotton swabs is an important measure to prevent infection.