Page updated 30 April 2007
Decontamination of Reusable Endoscope Accessories
Mechanical Cleaning
- Wash immediately in fresh detergent solution, dismantling as far as possible. Brush away adherent matter with a toothbrush.
- Flush detergent solution through all channels.
- Transfer to an ultrasonic cleaning bath containing ultrasonic cleaning agent. Ensure that all lumina are filled with liquid before cleaning.
- Rinse thoroughly with water, flushing out lumina.
Disinfection / Sterilisation
Either sterilize by autoclaving or where the accessories are heat sensitive (eg some endoscope brushes), use Sterrad Gas plasma (or ethylene oxide, which is not now generally available), or immerse in approved disinfectant for the recommended time. If the accessories have been used in situations where the presence of M. tuberculosis is likely, eg bronchoscopy, the time of immersion is doubled.
