Gauze

GAUZE, teia, marli, Gaze, mull, a loose cotton fabric of plain weave, manufactured specifically for medical needs. The name derives from the town of Marly-le-Roi, where a factory was located that first produced such a cheap material that it could successfully compete with charpie. The latter was obtained by shredding old, often washed (and therefore soft and hygroscopic) linen or cotton fabrics. Gauze belongs (together with canvas, batiste, buckram, canvas, muslin, and others, differing only in the density of the weave, thickness, and quality of the yarn) to the tissues of gauze [taffeta, canvas, or gros de Naples] weave, in which the weft thread passes alternately over and under one warp thread. According to GOST, there should be at least 12 longitudinal (warp) and 12 transverse (weft) threads per 1 cm², with a weight of at least 25 g per 1 m². According to state standard OST No. 1 303, there are 13.6±0.2 warp threads per 10.1±0.1 weft threads; the weight of 1 m² is from 39.5 to 42.9 g. More dense varieties are called English gauze (cambric, Russian kembrick). The purpose of gauze as a dressing material is to protect wounds from contamination; gauze is also used as a material for introducing into wounds to absorb their discharge. Therefore, gauze must be: a) chemically pure, i.e., consist as much as possible of a single cellulose; b) soft, free from solid particles that could mechanically damage or irritate injured tissues; c) hygroscopic, to easily and quickly absorb pus or blood; d) sterile. To ensure these properties, gauze is prepared from purified, degreased, and bleached yarn and is sterilized by conventional high-temperature methods in autoclaves. For medical needs, hygroscopic gauze (tela depurata, tela hydrophila) is used (GOST). The norms for such gauze are a neutral reaction on litmus, the absence of powders giving external whiteness (talc, starch, indigo, etc.), and residues of reducing agents (hyposulfite, used to bind excess chlorine during bleaching). 0.3% ash elements, 0.5% fat, negligible traces of chlorides, sulfates, and calcium are allowed; humidity up to 7%. The state standards for industry (OST Nos. 1 302–1 304) differ somewhat from the pharmacopoeial norms. In trade, gauze is available in strips 100 m long and 1 m wide, but gauze of old sizes is also encountered: 100 arshins (71.12 m) long and 10 (44.5 cm), 12 (53.34 cm), 16 (71.12 cm), and 20 vershoks (88.9 cm) wide. OST standardizes the width from 69 to 72 cm. Magnifying glasses with a square opening of 1 cm² are used to count threads. For special needs, starched, plastered, and impregnated (soaked) gauze is produced. Starched gauze is impregnated with starch paste and is used for firm, moderately fixing dressings. Plastered gauze is prepared by sprinkling with burnt plaster followed by pressing; upon wetting, it becomes soft immediately and then hardens quickly. Impregnation of gauze with medicinal substances is performed either by sprinkling it with the corresponding powder followed by pressing, by spraying with solutions of medicinal substances, or by passing gauze through channels containing the solution of the medicinal substance, followed by drying. There are varieties of impregnated gauze with iodoform (usually 5, 10, or 20%), corrosive sublimate (0.1% and 0.5%), boric acid, dermatol, xeroform (5% and 10%), etc. Uniform impregnation and the corresponding percentage composition are checked by conventional chemical methods. Gauze is used to make bandages (see) by cutting into narrow strips 5 and 10 m long and 3, 5, 7.5, 10, 12, and 15 cm wide (old sizes: length 5 and 10 arshins, width 1/2, 1, 1 1/2, 2, 2 1/2, 3, and 4 vershoks). The production of dressing materials is regulated by the circular of the Narkozdrav RSFSR No. 123 dated 7/VI 1924; according to this circular, production must be carried out under the responsibility of a specialist-pharmacist or physician; material designated as aseptic must be sterile together with the inner wrapper. According to GOST, dressing materials must be sterilized in flowing steam for 45 minutes or in a steam autoclave (at 115°) for 30 minutes, or by dry heating to 160-170° for 2 hours. Not all dressing materials withstand this last temperature. Various dressings are made from gauze; one type of ready-made dressing is individual packages (see), simplified gas masks (e.g., with hyposulfite), etc. At different times, ointments [for example, Unna's 'steatins'] and plasters applied to gauze were introduced, but they did not find wide application due to difficulties in storing and dispensing ointments applied to such a loose material, and the production of such forms is also difficult; therefore, such plasters are usually applied to buckram or other dense fabrics. Instead of gauze, batiste, canvas, flannel, tricot, and other fabrics are used; but the cheapness of gauze with its excellent qualities ensures its predominant application.