Do Disinfectant Wipes Really Disinfect?

Disinfecting wipes are commonly used disinfecting ingredients such as ethanol, isopropanol, quaternary ammonium salt, chlorhexidine, etc. added to the wet wipes alone or in combination, which can also achieve the same effect of disinfection. And the CDC's chief expert on disinfection also said the same.

Disinfectant wipes are one of the carrier disinfectants. The requirements for microbial kill indicators and toxicological safety indicators of disinfectant wipes are the same as those for disinfectants, but the requirements for disinfectants must be filed on the National Disinfection Product Online Recording Information Service Platform. Carrier disinfectants are not clearly included in the classification of disinfection products, so relatively few products have been filed.

The national standard revision plan for disinfectant wipes was finally implemented with the carrier disinfectant group standard, and no national standard was formed. Therefore, it is inevitable that some merchants' disinfectant wipes products are edge balls, and their functions are falsely advertised.

When choosing disinfectant wipes, first check if there is a record. If there is no record, ask the merchant for relevant inspection reports such as active ingredient content, sterilization, oral toxicity, and skin irritation. In addition, pay attention to the types of sterilized microorganisms, and select products that meet the required sterilization range according to the purpose of disinfection.

Disinfecting wipes are currently mainly used in hospitals. The main advantage is that they are disposable and disposable, which avoids cross-infection caused by repeated use of wipes.