Current state of radiation sterilization of medical products in India: Problems and special advantages in developing countries

Radiation sterilization is now firmly established as an industrial process for sterilizing a wide variety of medical products. The introduction of this technique has enabled the development of a number of inexpensive single-use products, offering a high degree of quality assurance for use in medical and surgical procedures. The need for introducing this technique in India was felt in the 'sixties. The developments leading to setting up ISOMED, a radiation plant for the sterilization of medical products at Trombay, and the specialized services offered to manufacturers of medical products, are described. The legal aspects of radiation sterilization in India are briefly discussed. Finally, the benefits of this technology to developing countries and some of the problems encountered in introducing it are also discussed. (author)