Thermo-Physiological Comfort Assessment of Performance Cooling Fabrics in Medical Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

---

Abstract

Healthcare workers wear medical PPE during contagious disease outbreaks, but the protective garments often create a microclimate that causes thermo-physiological discomfort in the wearer. To investigate solutions for this problem, we tested inner-layer garments made of 3 cooling fabrics and 1 control fabric with no cooling properties. Eight male participants were recruited. They were asked to fill out a demographics survey; have their physical body dimensions measured; and participate in a 30-min exercise program while wearing a test garment made of each of the selected fabrics under the full ensemble of medical PPE. Critical biofeedback was monitored along with subjective thermal comfort. This study evaluated the cooling effectiveness of the performance fabrics, and identified effective cooling fabrics that could be used in medical PPE applications. This study was conducted in a lab setting, and it will be desirable to verify the study findings with human subjects in real medical fields.

How to Cite:

Conroy, B., Klene, T., Koppa, L. & Park, J., (2017) “Thermo-Physiological Comfort Assessment of Performance Cooling Fabrics in Medical Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 74(1).