Sterilization procedures are important to any GOOD Dental Practice. A patient’s mouth is usually flooded with microbes, and any dental office that sees a large number of patients a day has an inherent potential for spreading infectious germs between patients and dental staff, through contaminated instruments and surfaces.
Infection Control Measures not only reduce the chances of getting a dental infection, they also reduce the risk of catching serious diseases like HIV and hepatitis.
According to the centres for Disease Control Dental Instruments are classified into three categories:
Critical Instruments are those that come into contact with blood and saliva. They should be sterilised after each use, the best form is achieved by steam under pressure {AUTOCLAVING}
Semi- Critical Instruments are those which do not contact with blood but touch the soft tissue, tongue, etc. These would include dental mirrors, diagnostic instruments, impression trays, etc. these would too be best sterilized by autoclaving along with cold sterilization.
Non- Critical Instruments are those that come in contact with external skin such as X-Ray heads, Blood Pressure Cuffs, etc. These would require cold sterilization with a suitable disinfectant.
Global Smiles is proud to say that atmost importance is given to the Sterilization Protocol.
a) Disposables are used for every patient starting with the doctor’s face mask, gloves, disposable drapes, glass dispensers, tray covers, suction tips, etc.
b) The instruments after being carefully washed are placed in an Ultra-sonic bath which removes even the tiniest particle due to its high frequency. Then they are subject to cold sterilization with a suitable disinfectant for a few hours. Finally, they are autoclaved (Steam Under Pressure).
At Global smiles, we use a 'class b' autoclave which is the strictest and the highest level of Sterilization, which meets the European EN 13060 Standard. Every month our sterilization is monitored by the American Dental Association (ADA), and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) via, Tejas labs in technical consultation, the University of Louisville, USA.
