Effectiveness of dental office instrument sterilization procedures.
To evaluate instrument sterilization procedures in Minnesota, biological indicators were used to monitor 406 sterilizers in 381 dental offices. Findings suggest a general improvement in instrument performance over that of a decade ago, but sterilization failure rates are still too high. Sterilizer operator errors are a major cause of sterilization failures. BIs are useful in monitoring sterilization performance only when sterilization procedures are performed consistently and competently by well-trained staff using adequately maintained equipment.
Hastreiter
R J
RJ
Dental Health Section, Minnesota Department of Health, Minneapolis 55440.
Molinari
J A
JA
Falken
M C
MC
Roesch
M H
MH
Gleason
M J
MJ
Merchant
V A
VA
D001412:Bacillus subtilis; D002487:Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S.; D003762:Dental Instruments; D003770:Dental Offices; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D001411:Geobacillus stearothermophilus; D006801:Humans; D008910:Minnesota; D013171:Spores, Bacterial; D013242:Sterilization / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States