Aseptic technique can best be described as an aggregation of reasonable practices performed in the surgical suite as part of the overall methodology in controlling or minimizing the possibility of infection. The key words in this definition are aggregation and reasonable. The real question is whether the surgical nursing community is prepared to reconsider and reassess the importance of a theoretical and reasonable, but not proven, practice that it has been advocating for almost two decades. From the evidence, it appears that a departure from the universal application of the barrier principle would not compromise the quality of care rendered to the surgical patient while at the same time prove to be economically and environmentally advantageous.