Disinfection and Reuse of Personal Protective Equipment

The Probabilistic Analysis of National Threats, Hazards and Risks (PANTHR) program compiled a report that details some of the recommended methods of disinfection and reuse for personal protective equipment (PPE). Due to the global shortage of respirators, medical masks, and similar PPE, conservation and reuse of this equipment is critical for COVID-19 efforts. The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of available data with regards to different types of respiratory protection, medical masks, and homemade masks, and which disinfection methods are recommended. Currently, there is limited science-based information available regarding effective disinfection methods for medical masks and the recommendations in this document are based on subject matter expert evaluation of materials compatibility. This report is intended for a technical audience interesting in the information available with regards to disinfection and reuse of respiratory PPE.