to expose ethylene oxide gas-sterilized item to warm, circulating air to remove trace ethylene oxide.

a chemical term usually defined as the replacement of an available hydrogen atom within a chemical group such as the amino, carboxyl, or hydroxyl groups with an hydroxyethyl radical.

a mild disinfectant used on the skin and mucuos membrane to lower the count and inhibit the growth of bacteria.

absence of microorganisms that cause disease; freedom of infection; exclusion of microorganisms.

a steam-pressure vessel that sterilizes by steam under pressure at temperature above 1000 C.

a highly heat-resistant, spore-forming microorganism used in form on commercially prepared spore strips for checking sterilization effectiveness in steam sterilizers.

a spore-forming microorganism used in spore form on commercially prepared spore strips for checking sterilization effectiveness in ethylene oxide sterilizers.

having the characteristic of destroying bacteria.

inhibiting or retarding bacterial growth.

the number of microorganisms with which an object is contaminated.