title: Dental instrument sterilization: a six-step process.
abstract: The recycling of orally soiled dental instruments and pieces of equipment involves a collection of procedures that prepare those items for reuse. The process must be performed properly each time - so, that patients and dental office staff are not placed at risk. For the sterilization effort to be successful, it must also be efficient and as benign as possible to items being treated. The overall process involves six basic steps. The procedures involve a smooth step-to-step flow and a dedicated location. The ideal flow is as follows: (1) receive dirty items at designated "dirty area, (2) move to soaking (holding) area, (3) move onto scrubbing/ultrasonic (cleaning) area, (4) move onto packaging, (5) sterilize, and (6) finally storage and distribution.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Palenik
mesh_terms: D003762:Dental Instruments; D006801:Humans; D019552:Infection Control, Dental / Q000379:methods*; D013242:Sterilization / Q000379:methods*