Flammable Surgical Preps Require Vigilance

The “fire triangle, ” or “fire triad, ” is taught throughout general fire safety education and is used as a point of emphasis for surgical fire pre-vention. Fire is the result of the combination of a fuel source, an oxidizing substance, and heat. In the operating room, alcohol-based preps and draping materials are the most common sources of fuel. Alcohol-based surgical prep solutions are excellent antiseptic agents but are also extremely flammable. In most operating rooms, the prep-ping and draping of the surgical patient is a role of the operating room nurse. Anesthesia provid-ers use these same prep solutions for central line preparation and for regional anesthesia proce-dures. As surgical team members, our role should include increased vigilance whenever an alcohol-based prep solution is used in the oper-ating room (OR)