Everything you ever wanted to know about operating room head coverings

In case you might want to challenge your hospital’s policy on the subject, I have gathered all of the recent research I could find on surgical head wear.

In response to a 2013 question from a reader, I blogged about the complete lack of evidence that OR staff hair caused wound infections or any other problem. After a similar question from another reader three years later, I pointed out nothing had changed.

Finally a 2017 paper in the journal Neurosurgery appeared online comparing the incidence of wound infections in clean cases for the 13 months before and the 13 months after the institution of a ban on the wearing of the traditional surgeons’ ca`p. Over 15,000 patients were included in the study which found no statistically significant difference in the rate of wound infections.

Are neckties dangerous to your health?

Wearing a necktie significantly decreases cerebral blood flow says a new study in the journal Neuroradiology. This finding caused a minor flurry of activity on Twitter, and as usual, the press sensationalized and misinterpreted the study’s results.

Here’s a headline from the Deccan Chronicle: “Wearing ties hamper [sic] productivity in office; here’s why.” The sub- heading is “Study suggests men who wear T-shirts in the office may produce better work.” T-shirts were not mentioned in the paper. The name of the journal that published it was incorrect in the article too.

Forbes didn’t do much better. It’s lede is “Neckties are stupid. Could they also make you stupid?” The paper said nothing of the kind.