PowerPoint Presentation

3MBair Hugger Facts

What is the 3MBair Hugger? The Bair Hugger warming system is used by more than 80 percent of U.S. hospitals to keep patients warm before, during, and after surgery. The Bair Hugger warming system draws in the filtered air of the operating room, passes it through an internal filter and warms that air to the selected temperature. The warmed air flows to a single-use Bair Hugger warming blanket through an enclosed hose, and is then gently dispersed across the surface of the skin. Contrary to claims from a competitor, the Bair Hugger system does not disrupt the air flow in the operating room.

Attacks against 3MBair HuggerA competitor that sells a different type of warming device claims the Bair Hugger system can cause air movements that could allow microorganisms to infect patients. There is absolutely no proof of that. By raising doubts, the competitor hopes to sell more of his warming devices. He also is working with lawyers to try and blame the Bair Hugger system for infections suffered by patients during surgery.3M, which makes the Bair Hugger warming system, takes every allegation of patient injury seriously. 3M does not believe there is merit to any of the lawsuits it has evaluated. None of the claims have yet made it to trial. 3M is confident that the science will show the Bair Hugger system is not the cause of these surgical site infections.

Does the 3MBair Hugger cause infections? No. There is no evidence that the Bair Hugger systems forced-air warming causes infections.According to www.bairhuggerfacts.com scientific literature suggests that maintaining normal body temperature during surgery can have numerous benefits that include a reduction in the rate of postoperative infections, reduced blood loss, a reduction in the possibility of heart attacks, shorter recovery times and lower mortality rates. The Bair Hugger system is a safe and effective method of maintaining normal body temperature during surgery. Any advertisements suggesting otherwise are wrong and misleading

What causes a surgical site infection?Many factors can cause a surgical site infection. Everyone has bacteria in their bodies. The majority of surgical site infections come from the patients own bacteria. When the skin is opened, bacteria in the body can migrate to the surgical wound. A number of factors are known to increase the risk of surgical site infections, including having other medical problems or diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease, being elderly, or overweight and smoking.

How does the 3MBair Hugger help prevent surgical infections?A widely accepted practice for reducing the risk of infection is to maintain a surgical patients core body temperature greater than 96.8 F throughout the surgical procedure. Keeping people warm during surgery can, in fact, reduce the risk of infections, reduce the length of hospital stays and improve overall outcomes from surgery. Numerous healthcare professional organizations have recommended the use of forced-air warming to safely and effectively maintain a patients normal body temperature during surgery.

Learn the Truth: Bair Hugger Therapy is safe and effectiveThe 3M Bair Hugger warming systems technology has been used in more than 170 studies and more than 60 randomized controlled clinical trials. Its ability to maintain normal body temperature can provide a range of benefits, from lower mortality rates to shorter hospital stays.Plaintiff lawyers suing 3M and the Bair Hugger warming system cite several studies in their lawsuits. These studies suggest that, in theory, the heat generated by the Bair Hugger system could affect air flow in the operating room.Its important to know that the majority of these studies were associated with Scott Augustine and his company, Augustine Biomedical + Design, a competitor in the patient-warming space. Mark Albrecht, one of the researchers on six of the eight studies, worked for Augustine at the time.Plaintiff lawyers also do not mention some crucial facts: None of the studies directly link surgical site infections to the Bair Hugger system; none of them show that the Bair Hugger system has ever caused a surgical site infection.A respected independent research group, ECRI, examined the scientific literature and determined that the evidence does not justify discontinuing the use of Bair Hugger warming technology. ECRI also chastised Augustine Temperature Management for mischaracterizing the results of the review.

Resourceswww.fawfacts.comwww.safepatientwarming.com