Comparison of different medical clothing used in Operating Rooms (OR’s) - the importance of thermal comfort at work

Abstract

In operating room, the health professionals are exposed to stress situations that can influencetheir physical and psychological performance. The thermal properties are an important requirementfor the best performance of OR medical clothing, that plays a crucial role in thermal comfort of the user,that involve the regulation of heat and mass transfer between a clothed body and the environment. In thisway, the aim of this work was comparison of thermal properties between scrub and clean air suits. Thetest was performed on a thermal manikin, tri-dimensional test that simulates the use of clothing measuringclothing insulation and to evaluate the thermal comfort. The test provides a good estimate of totaldry heat loss from the body, between body surface and textile materials, and esteem the comfort level ofthis work wear.