With the advent and spread of so many diseases the need for infection control has never been greater. Sterilisation is a process to kill micro-organisms. It is needed to prevent cross infection among patients and health personnel. Although medical history of each and every patient is taken still universal precautions are followed as per guidelines established by Centre of Disease Control (CDC) and Occupational Safety and Health Agency (OSHA). Human blood and certain body fluids (saliva) are treated as if known to be infectious.

Measure for Sterilisation

A lot of emphasis is placed on infection control products and procedures at our clinic.

• Disposable items are used wherever appropriate.
• Disposable gloves are worn while treating patients and never used more than once.
• Disposable syringes and needles are used to eliminate chances of cross infection.
• A thorough manual cleaning of instruments is done before, placed in sterilisation wraps, then placed in autoclave.
• Instruments are steam autoclaved after every use.

Steam Autoclave

Autoclaves are inevitable to a dental practice. It is a pressurized, steam heated vessel used to sterilize medical equipment. It uses steam, pressure and high temperature for sterilisation. Since no chemicals are used there are no chances of rusting or blunting of instruments. Steam sterilisation is thereby considered most efficient and safe for sterilisation of medical instruments.