Low-cost methodologies for evaluating the cleaning performance of commercial medical device detergents using commercially available photographic film strip and simulated dried red blood soil

The cleaning performance of a series of commercially available non-enzymatic and enzymatic detergents were evaluated based on their ability to break down gelatin layers in photographic film and to remove simulated dried blood soil. Both methods presented are simple methodologies with quick turn-around-time for screening the cleaning performance of detergents. The results also showed that there is no significant difference in the performance between non-enzymatic and enzymatic detergents under the test conditions. In addition, neutral to slightly basic pH detergents were found to potentially be more effective in cleaning simulated dried blood soil in comparison with alkaline detergents. The findings also indicated that the cleaning performance of medical device detergents can be significantly influenced by formulation components other than enzymes, such as surfactants.