Experimental Study about Scattering Characteristics in the Lavatory of Urinary Excreted Anticancer Drugs

Abstract

Urine containing anticancer drugs may be scattered outside the toilet bowl during urination, and these drugs may be spread when they are stepped on. The scattering of urine droplets is dependent on the shape of the toilet bowl, contact point of the urine with the toilet bowl, and the posture assumed for urination. However, this concept has not been well investigated. In this study, we investigated the scattering of urine using fluorescent dye in a urinal and a Western-style toilet.

To represent urination in the standing position, we sprayed a fluorescein solution on the wall or the bottom of a urinal. We modeled urination in the standing and sitting positions in a Western-style toilet by spraying fluorescein into the toilet bowl and in three spots around the toilet bowl. The number of droplets, area, scattering distance, and scattering area around the toilet bowl were measured optically.

The droplet scattering was more extensive around the toilet bowl when the liquid was aimed at the bottom of the urinal and the front edge bottom of the water in the Western-style toilet. There was no droplet scattering when using the Western-style toilet in the sitting position.

If a male patient receiving chemotherapy urinates in the standing position, the anticancer drug will spread through scattered urine and become an environmental pollutant. Therefore, it is important to instruct male patients to urinate in a sitting position when using a Western-style toilet.