Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 June 2016
I read with great interest the article by Kotilainen and Gantz in Infection Control [now Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology] regarding biological indicators (BIs) for use with flash sterilization processes. Although this study was conducted with greater care than previous investigations in this area, we believe that certain relevant factors regarding the effect of BI design on BI performance may have been overlooked. Because of differences in the design and construction of the BIs evaluated, a significant variation in response to flash sterilization or high temperature processing may result. Such an effect was first noted by Perkins et al and has been commented on by Reich and Fitzpartrick and Joslyn.