What it means
In infection control, an item or field is sterile when every germ, including spores, has been destroyed, usually by sterilizationstair-uh-luh-ZAY-shunA process that destroys all microorganisms, including spores, on an item; also a permanent birth control procedure.Full entry . Anything that enters sterile body tissue, the bloodstream or the bladder must be sterile: surgical instruments, needles, urinary catheters. A sterile item touched by anything non-sterile becomes contaminated. In reproduction, sterile means not able to conceive or father a child.
For the nurse
Rules of a sterile field: only sterile touches sterile; the 2.5 cm (1 inch) edge of a sterile drape is not sterile; keep the field in sight and above the waist; if in doubt, consider it contaminated.
At a glance
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Related terms
catheter
A thin, flexible tube put into the body to drain fluid out or to put fluid or drugs in.
sterilization
A process that destroys all microorganisms, including spores, on an item; also a permanent birth control procedure.
contamination
The presence of germs or harmful substances on something that should be clean or sterile.
surgical asepsis
Practices that keep an area or object completely free of microorganisms; also called sterile technique.