Medicines can affect textiles and surfaces

In healthcare facilities, furniture is exposed to complex stresses that differ from other environments. One important factor is how medicines - both through direct spills and patient use - can affect textiles and surfaces over time.

Many medicines contain active chemical compounds that can react with materials. These include disinfectants, iodine-based preparations, fat-based ointments and cytostatic drugs. In addition, medicines taken by patients can be excreted through skin, sweat or spills, and thus come into contact with furniture surfaces over a longer period of time. When such substances are absorbed into textiles, they can lead to discoloration, stains or changes in the structure of the material.

In practice, the combination of medication and daily use can break down even robust textiles. This is a type of stress that is difficult to guard against without limiting the use of the furniture for the patient groups that depend on it - which in most cases is neither realistic nor desirable. Over time, this can result in visible changes such as fading, scaling or surface deterioration.

At the same time, frequent cleaning is a necessity in healthcare facilities. Effective cleaners and disinfectants help to maintain hygiene, but in combination with drug residues, they can exacerbate the impact on materials. As a result, textiles may lose color, become more porous or change surface structure.

This type of impact can also occur on materials that are initially developed for high durability. When chemical exposure occurs repeatedly over time, even robust materials can gradually degrade, resulting in a shorter than expected lifespan.

For materials such as artificial leather and leather, such effects can be particularly visible. Artificial leather (PU/PVC) can, over time, change its surface properties, for example by becoming brittle, sticky or losing its finish. Real leather can react with discoloration, drying out or scaling that is difficult to reverse. These are natural reactions when materials are exposed to repeated exposure to chemical substances.

It is important to understand that such changes are not necessarily due to improper use or poor quality, but are the result of a demanding use environment where the materials are continuously affected.