Mechanical ventilators generate aerosol which may be bacterially colonized. PURPOSE - To determine the environmental contamination generated by ventilators with two different humidification techniques. METHODS - The study was done comparing the generation of bacterial colonized aerosol by the expiratory valve of mechanical respirators with conventional water nebulization or with hygroscopic condensator as the humidifier source during 15 minutes of observation. RESULTS - The aerosol got positive cultures in 32.2% of the conventional system and in 5% of the condensator system (p = 0.0340). CONCLUSION - We concluded that the humidification by the hygroscopic condensator may be an efficient way to reduce environmental bacterial contamination.
Bacterial aerosol; Hygroscopic condensator; Nebulizer; Environmental contamination
