The ongoing controversy over the use of ethylene oxide (EtO) as a medical device sterilant has yielded a certification by the U.S. FDA for hydrogen peroxide as an alternative category A sterilant. The news is a welcome bit of relief for industry and for patients as the Environmental Protection Agency still seems bent on imposing what some in industry see as draconian controls on EtO, which is still employed to sterilize half of all medical devices used in the U.S. each year.