INTERSURGICAL has responded to the requirements of ‘ISO standard 80601-2-13 anaesthetic workstation’, and has launched two anaesthetic gas scavenging system (AGSS) single use safety valves, one for use with 30 mm scavenging tube and the other for use with 22 mm scavenging tube.
Section 201.103.3.2.1 of the ISO standard states ‘under single fault conditions, the pressure at the inlet to the anaesthetic gas scavenging system shall not exceed 20hPa (20 cm H2O) with an exhaust flow rate of 75 lpm’. This means that there must be some form of pressure relief in the transfer tube from the APL valve to the AGSS collection equipment, known as the ‘air-brake’. This is a safety requirement as the transfer tube may become occluded, which will allow the pressure to build up in the breathing system, preventing the patient exhaling. With a valve fitted, the pressure will be released into the atmosphere, reducing the pressure in the breathing system.
