HVAC systems play an important role in moderating and controlling both surgical site infections and airborne infectious disease transmission in hospitals and clinics. Designing a proper HVAC system can minimize the airborne particles' concentration and prevent the spread of contaminated agents to the wound area, instruments and implants, and the medical team. Various ventilation system strategies have been developed to reduce the airborne particles in the air during the surgeries. The turbulent mixing, laminar airflow, and temperature-controlled airflowventilations are three common operating room ventilation systems used in rooms where major surgeries are conducted. However, mobile ventilation systems are mostly applied for minor surgeries and dental treatments that mainly supply a mixing airflow with random directions.Several studies revealed that instead using a mobile laminar airflow ventilation system successfully reduced the contamination level; however, the washing effect of such systems is limited to distance and location. In this regard, this research investigates the impact of using a novel fixed ventilation system based on the principle of temperature-controlled airflow on the reduction of both the SSI and cross-contamination risks in patients and medical teams during minor surgeries. The airflow behavior and airborne particle distribution are simulated by using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques.
QC 20211110