Q: I am a doing my project on non PVC I.V bags,. List me all the advantages of these bags over the traditional PVC bags and the Glass bottles used in IV infusion and also take a special note on the advantages of these bags in the cardiac surgery, with all the most important needs of these NON pvc bags in the cardiac segment. also list the literatures for the same

A:Commonly three types of bottles/bags are used for i.v. fluids: (1) Glass bottles (2) PVC and (3) Non-PVC i.e. polypropelene and polyethylene. Glass bottles are in three pieces: glass bottle, rubber plug and aluminium seal. These bottles are no more in vogue because of problem and cost of transportation, breakages, leakages and contamination. Apart from these problems, in developing countries like India, there is always the danger of re-using bottles. All reused bottles are heavily contaminated and sterilizing them is a very tedious job even with powerful jets. Hence they pose threat to patients lives.PVC bags are in one piece. If pharma grade PVC is used, they are quite safe because a sophisticated leak test can be performed. They cannot be reused and an added advantage is that they can be squeezed for bolus delivery of fluid in emergency. Generally these days most producers use form-filled technology so that there is no manual handling while filling in i.v. fluids. They occur both in bottle and bag shape. While PVC generally does not interact with most solutions, certain drugs can interact and hence such agents carry a warning not to use PVC bags/bottles and even pipes.Non-PVC bags are like PVC bags but depending upon the medicinal agent being used do not cause reaction but it all depends on the drug being used. They can be produced either with form-filled technology or in the form of bottles that can be sealed after filling.For references, please go through pharmaceutical journals such as the Journal of the Indian Pharmaceutical Association obtaianable from Indian Pharmaceutical Association, Kalina, Santacruz East, Mumbai 400098. Tel: 91 22 6122401; Fax: 91 22 6140480; e-mail address: ipacentr@bol.net.in