A practical approach to sterilization and disinfection was proposed by Earle H. Spaulding nearly 50 years ago. The concept is so clear and logical that with minor refinement, to this day, it serves as the basis for successful sterilization and disinfection strategies. According to Spaulding, patient-care items can be categorized as critical, semi-critical and non-critical predicated on the degree of risk for healthcare-associated transmission of infectious diseases with their use.
