How should a break in sterile technique be corrected during a case?

• A. Continue as normal and monitor.
• B. Immediately re-establish sterile technique, replace contaminated drapes or gloves, and document the incident.
• C. Only re-glove if contamination is gross.
• D. Notify nurse after procedure.

Answer: (B)

When a break in sterile technique occurs, the priority is to restore asepsis immediately. The correct approach is to pause the procedure on the sterile field, replace any contaminated drapes or gloves with sterile equivalents, and re-establish a sterile setup before continuing. This often means removing contaminated gloves, performing a new sterile glove donning, re-draping as needed, and ensuring the instruments and field are clean and sterile again. Documentation is essential—record what happened, what steps were taken to re-establish sterility, and who was involved—so that infection control and quality records reflect the incident.

This is why simply continuing as normal isn’t appropriate: a breach has already occurred, and proceeding without correction risks introducing infection to the wound. Waiting to re-glove or re-drape only if contamination is gross delays necessary protections and isn’t consistent with maintaining asepsis. Notifying someone after the procedure also misses the opportunity to immediately safeguard the patient, which is the goal during the event.