Contamination of the Visors of Total Body Exhaust Suits in Total Hip Replacement Surgery

We examined 40 visors, used with the Charnley helmets and the total body exhaust suits, for contamination with blood, fat, or washout fluids during primary and revision total hip arthroplasty. All visors showed droplet contamination. This was more extensive in revision surgery (55 droplets: mean) than in primary operations (20 droplets: mean). Surgeons undertaking total hip arthroplasty must have full-face cover.