KENYA STANDARDS    KS 2556: 2018 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Impregnated Cotton swabs  — Specification  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
    ©KEBS 201 8                                                                                          First Edition 201 8 
 
 KS 2556: 2018 
ii  © KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved   
TECHNICAL COMMITTEE REPRESENTATION  
 
The following organizations were rep resented on the Technical Committee  
 
Nursing Council of Kenya  
Ministry of Health  
Government Chemist  Department  
Coast Provincial Hospital  
County of Nairobi  
Association for the Physically Disabled of Kenya  
CHAK  
Kenyatta National Hospital  
Kenya Bureau of Stan dards — Secretariat  
 
 
REVISION OF KENYA STANDARDS  
 
In order to keep abreast of progress in industry, Kenya Standards shall be regularly reviewed. Suggestions for 
improvements to published standards, addressed to the Managing Director, Kenya Bureau of Stand ards, are 
welcome.  
 
 
 
© Kenya Bureau of Standards, 201 8 
Copyright.  Users are   reminded that by virtue of section 25 of the Copyright Act, Cap. 12 of 2001 of the Laws of Kenya, cop yright subsists in 
all Kenya Standards and except as provided under section  26 of this Act, no Kenya Standard produced by Kenya Bureau of Standards may 
be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system in any form or transmitted by any means without prior permission in writing from the Managing 
Director.  
 
 
 
 KENYA STANDARDS    KS 2556: 2018 
 
© KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved    iii  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Cotton swabs — Specification  
 
 
 
 
KENYA BUREAU OF STANDARDS (KEBS)  
 
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Coast Region     Lake Region          North Rift Regio n 
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210555  
Fax: (+254 041) 229448    Fax: (+254 057) 21814  
 KS 2556: 2018 
iv  © KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved   
 
Forew ord 
 
Kenya Bureau of Standards is a national standards bod y (NSB). The work of preparing Kenya  Standards is 
normally carried out through national  technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which 
a technical committee has been establ ished has the right to be represented on that committee. National  
organizations, governmental and non -governmental, in liaison with KEBS , also take part in the work.  
Kenya  Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the KS ISO/IEC  Directiv es, Part  2. 
The main task of technical committees is to prepare National  Standards. Draft Kenya  Standards adopted by the 
technical committees are circulated to the technical committee member s for ballo ting. Publication as a Kenya  
Standard requires approval  by at least 2/3 of the member s casting a vote.  
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent 
rights. KEBS  shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.  
This Ken ya Standard  was prepared by Technical Committee KEBS /TC 136, Medical Tools, devices and 
Equipment . 
During the preparation of this standard, reference was made to the following documents:  
KN WA 2556:2014 Cotton swabs - Specification  
The assistance derived f rom these publications is hereby acknowledged.  
 
 
  
© KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved    1 KENYA STANDARD                       CD 09/SERV/201 8 
 
 
Impregnated Cotton swabs  – Specification  
 
 
1  Scope  
 
This Kenya Standard specifies minimum requirements and prescribes the methods of test for Impreg nated 
Cotton Swabs.  
 
2 Application  
 
This standard shall not apply to the non -woven cotton swabs.  
 
3 Normative Reference  
 
The following standards shall be applicable to the cotton swabs.  
 
KS 32, Conditions of testing textiles  
 
KS 124 -1, Methods for determi nation of commercial mass consignment of textile fibres and yarns , 
 
KS 210, Glossary of terms relating to fabrics made from natural fibres , 
 
KS 360, Methods for determination of pH values of aqueous extracts of textile materials , 
 
KS 1029, Methods for dete rmination of sterility of textile products , 
 
KS 1184, Isopropyl alcohol – Specification,  
 
KS 1833, Textile – Quantitative chemical analysis of binary fibre mixtures.  
 
4  Terms and definitions  
 
For the purpose of this standard, the following definitions and  those given in KS 210 shall apply.  
 
4.1 
Swab  
absorbent pad or piece of material used in surgery and medicine for cleaning wounds, applying medication, or 
taking specimens.  
 
5 Requirements  
 
5.1  Materials  
 
The cotton fibres shall be well carded and bleache d to a good white, free from pieces of thread and reasonably 
free from leaf, shell, fibre -dust and foreign matter. It may be slightly off white if it is sterilized. It shall offer 
appreciable resistance when pulled.  
 
 KS 2556: 2018 
2  © KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved   
5.2  Freedom from microorganisms  
The pre-injection swabs shall be sterile.  
 
5.3  Absorbency  
 
When tested in accordance with Annex A, the mass of water shall be 16 g for each gram of dry cotton, in the 
minimum.  
 
5.4  Submersion time  
 
When tested in accordance with Annex A, the time requi red fo r complete submersion  shall not be more than 
10 s. 
 
5.5  pH Value  
 
The pH value of the aqueous extract of cotton wool shall range from 6 to 8. The pH shall be tested in 
accordance with KS 360.  
 
5.6  Soluble substances  
 
When tested in accordance with Annex B, the water -soluble substances shall not constitute more than 0.5 % of 
the mass of cotton.  
 
5.7 Fibre composition  
 
The fibre composition of the cotton bud shall be 100 % cotton. This shall be tested by a microscope and also in 
accordance with KS 1833.  
 
5.8  Fluor escent brightening agents  
 
Fluorescent brightening agents shall not be used in the manufacture of cotton swabs  and when tested in 
accordance with Annex C, not more than occasional point of fluorescence shall be visible.  
 
5.9  Isopropyl  alcohol or “ spirit”  
 
Isopropyl alcohol, or  “spirit ” used in the manufacture of the cotton swabs shall be 70% Isopropyl alcohol or 2 -
Propanol 70  %v/v in 0.5ml in addition to meeting the require ments of KS 1184.  
 
6  Pack aging  
 
6.1 Impregnated  Cotton swabs shall be pack aged  in suitable containers  which guarantee product safety and 
integrity . 
 
6.2 The disposal of the used packaging material and condemned product shall be done in compliance with the 
EMCA 1999, and Waste Regulations 2006 on solid and liquid wastes of the La ws of Kenya.  
 
7  Labeling and Marking  
 
7.1 Each container shall be legibly and indelibly marked with the following information;  
i) Manufacturer/Importer  name and registered trade mark, if any,  
ii) The words, “ Impregnated Cotton Swabs”,  
iii) Size declaration  
iv) Instructio ns for use  
v) The words, “For external use only”,   
© KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved    3 vi) Lot/batch  number,  
vii) Country of Origin . 
viii) Date of manufacture  
ix) Expiry date  
 KS 2556: 2018 
4  © KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved  Annex A  
(Normative)  
 
Determination of submersion time and water absorption  
 
A.1 Principle  
Cotton is placed in metallic basket and allowed  to sink in tub of water. The time taken to submerge completely is 
noted and amount of water absorbed is measured.  
 
A.2 Apparatus  
A.2.1  Cylindrical basket, weighing 0.54±0.069 g, of height 16 mm, diameter 10 mm with square openings of 15 
mm to 20 mm, made of copper wire of 0.4 mm diameter.  
 
A.2.2  Tub of water, of 10 cm – 20 cm.  
 
A.2.3  Thermometer  
 
A.2.4  Stop watch, 0.2 s accuracy.  
 
A.2.5  Container  
 
A.2.6  Weighing balance  
 
A.3 Procedure  
 
A.3.1  Take random specimen of 5 g of cotton wool from several container s of cotton swabs and place them 
loosely in the cylindrical basket.  
 
A.3.2  Weigh the basket using a weighing balance before placing the specimen. Weigh again after placing the 
specimen.  
 
A.3.3  Drop the basket with its contents in a horizontal position into  a tub of eater, with water at about 20ºC 
reaching a height of approximately 100 mm.  
 
A.3.4  Measure by means of stop watch, the time required for the basket to sink below the surface of water in 
seconds.  
 
A.3.5  Repeat the procedure above two more times.  
 
A.3.6 After testing the submersion time for each cotton ball, leave the submerged basket at the bottom of the 
water for 3 minutes. Remove the basket with its contents from water. Leave it for 30 s in a horizontal 
position above the tub so as to drain the re maining water.  
 
A.3.7  Place the basket in a container of known weight (M 1), weigh it (M 2). 
 
 
  
© KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved    5 A.4 Calculation  
 
A.4.1  Submersion time  
Take the average of the three measurements in A.3.4 and A.3.5 as the sinking time in seconds.  
 
A.4.2  Water absorption  
 
Wate r absorbed = M 2-(M1 + 0.54 + 1)  
 
Where,  
 
 M2 = mass of container + basket + cotton wool after absorption  
 M1 = mass of container.  
 
Water absorbed by each gram of cotton wool  
 
  = 
tonwool massofbed waterabsor
cot  
 
  =
1)54.1 (1 2m m  
A.5 Report  
 
A.5.1  report the value calculated in A.4.1 as the submersion time in seconds.  
 
A.5.2  Report the value calculated A.4.2 as the absorbency.  
 KS 2556: 2018 
6  © KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved  Annex B  
(normative)  
 
Method for determination of water soluble substances  
 
B.1 Principle  
Cotton wool is extracted in hot water an d the extract is dried and then weighed.  
 
B.2 Apparatus  
 
B.2.1  Weighing balance  
B.2.2  Graduated flask  
B.2.3  Burner  
B.2.4  Funnel  
B.2.5  Filter paper  
B.2.6  Drier , with temperature control.  
B.2.7  Clock  
 
B.3 Procedure  
B.3.1  To 1 g of cotton ball from container,  add 100 mL of water and boil gently for 30 minutes, adding sufficient 
water to maintain the original volume.  
 
B.3.2  Pour the extract through a funnel into another vessel, transfer the cotton to the funnel and press out the 
water absorbed therein. With a g lass rod, wash the cotton with two 150 portions of hot water, pressing the 
cotton dry after each washing.  
 
B.3.3  Filter the combined extracts and washings, evaporate to concentrate, transfer to the weighing bottles 
and dry at 105 ºC to constant weight. Wei gh the residual (M) in grams.  
 
B.4 Calculation  
 
 Soluble substances, %  = 
1001XM  
      
    = 100M  % 
 
B.5 Report  
 
Report the value in B.4 as the percentage of water soluble substances.  
 
  
© KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved    7 Annex C  
(normative)  
 
Method for the determination of  fluorescent brightening agents  
 
C.1 Principle  
A layer of cotton wool is examined under the UV light for detection of any fluorescent materials.  
 
C.2 Apparatus  
C.2.1  Ultra -violet light source  
C.2.2  Scale, graduated in mm.  
 
C.3 Procedure  
Examine a layer, ab out 5 mm in thickness, under the UV light, of wavelength 365 nm.  
 
C.4 Report  
The sample may show only a slight brownish -violet fluorescence and not more than an occasional yellow 
particle. It shows no intense blue fluorescence except that which may be show n by a few isolated fibres.  
 
 KS 2556: 2018 
8  © KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved  Annex D  
(normative)  
 
Method for determination of moisture regain  
 
D.1 Principle  
A known mass of absorbent cotton wool is dried and then the loss in mass expressed as a ratio of the dry mass.  
 
D.2 Apparatus  
D.2.1  Weighing bala nce 
D.2.2  Drier , with temperature control.  
 
D.3 Procedure  
D.3.1  Weigh (M 1) a known amount of cotton wool, dry it at a temperature of 100 ºC to 105 ºC until constant 
mass (M 2) is obtained as described in KS 124 Part 1.  
 
D.4 Calculation  
 
 Moisture content  = 
100) (
22 1XMM M  
 
D.5 Reporting  
Report the value calculated in D.4 as the moisture regain in per cent.  
 
  
© KEBS 201 8 — All rights reserved    9 Annex E  
(normative)  
 
Determination of mass of cotton  
 
E.1 Principle  
 
Mass of a ball of cotton  swab from a container is measured on a weighing b alance.  
 
E.2 Apparatus  
E.2.1  Weighing balance , accuracy 0.001 g.  
 
E.3 Procedure  
E.3.1  Conditioning  
Conditioning the specimen in accordance with KS 32.  
E.3.2  Take the mass of the conditioned ball of cotton with a weighing balance. Take mass measurement of 
four other balls. Calculate the average mass of bud from the five measurements.  
 
E.4 Report  
Report the average mass of cotton balls as the mass of the cotton swab.