The impact of high-quality equipment in the world of dentistry can never be overstated. So much depends on the quality and sterilization of the instruments. The wise once said: ‘A surgeon can only be as sharp as their equipment.’

To keep dental surgical instruments durable and longer-lasting, it is essential to clean and sterilize them before and after use.

Dental Surgical Instruments care:

The instruments can last several years, if kept in ideal conditions. Let us discuss the three steps of oral surgery instruments:

1. Preconditioning Surgical Equipment:

Immerse all surgical instruments in the disinfectant solution immediately after use. The biomaterials that get dry on the tools can cause a biohazard. During this pandemic, the first step has become an utmost necessity. It is also important to keep in mind the concentration and reaction span given by the manufacturer of the disinfectant and cleaning solution.

2. Cleaning:

All of the following procedures aim to wipe off the soiled particles from the instrument. Therefore, it is not advised to use corrosive detergents on tools such as sodium hypochlorite, since they are highly corrosive. 

Ultrasonic cleaning:

After the initial stage of cleaning and sterilizing, the instruments are ready to be cleansed in an ultrasonic machine. The dried instruments must be dipped in an ultrasonic fluid in the machine and are allowed to cleanse for a good ten minutes.

• Medical Washer Cleaning 

This is an automatic cleaning procedure for dental surgical instruments. Dip them in the medical washer after filling it with a cleaning agent. 

• Manual Cleaning:

We do not recommend manual cleaning of the instruments since it may lead to infections. However, if a UV disinfectant is used with manual cleaning, the tools will be sterilized effectively.

3. Rinsing and Drying

This process works in demineralized or distilled water for rinsing tools. It goes on until all the disinfectant or cleaner comes out. Then, the instruments are dried with a disposable cloth or in a dryer with filtered compressed air.

4. Check

Checking thoroughly each tool after cleaning is very important. It ensures not to use the damaged product again on patients. 

5. Packaging:

This step is applied to cleaning and drying of instruments. There are two types of instrument packaging:

• Re-usable Packaging:

In this packing, the cleaning assistant uses an aluminum and stainless-steel watertight case. A tray can also be used with the same material lids or thermo-resistant plastic containers.

• Disposable packing

In this, plastic or coated, paper sheaths or bags are used and certified by NF EN 868.

6. Sterilization

The effectiveness of sterilization depends on the implementation of the steps mentioned above. We recommend the autoclave steam sterilization procedure. This machine requires a temperature as high as 134 degrees centigrade for 18 minutes.

• Control Measures after sterilization:

Medical instruments must be inspected for sterilization effectiveness after every cycle. The tools must be thoroughly dried after autoclaving. If the tool package is wet, sterilization cannot take place. Each instrument must be labeled with a sterilization cycle number, sterilization number, date of sterilization, and an expiration date. Also, the physician must account for the integrity of the condition and expiration date before usage.

7. Storage:

The newly sterilized tools must be stored in a clean and dry space. The date of sterilization and expiration date must also be appropriately marked on the dentistry tools.

Where to purchase reliable dental instruments:

Finding the right tools is difficult, especially if there are a lot of competitors in the medical instrument industry. If you’re interested in purchasing, GerDentUSA Inc. got the right tools for you. They are made from German stainless steel, marking them as high quality. Tried and tested by physicians and surgeons all over the world, GerDentUSA has been successfully in the business for over 30 years.