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Dental burs and endodontic files: are routine sterilization procedures effective?
Archie Morrison1, Susan Conrod
1Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Texas Dental Journal
|April 16, 2010
Summary
New dental burs and endodontic files are not sterile. Current sterilization methods are inadequate for used instruments, suggesting they may need to be single-use devices.
Area of Science:
- Dental instruments
- Sterilization protocols
- Infection control
Background:
- Dental burs and endodontic files possess complex miniature architectures, complicating precleaning and sterilization.
- Current sterilization protocols for these instruments require careful consideration, with some advocating for single-use device designation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of various dental sterilization techniques for endodontic files and dental burs.
- To determine if new dental burs and endodontic files are sterile upon manufacturer packaging.
Main Methods:
- Assessed sterility of new and used dental burs and endodontic files before and after sterilization.
- Tested new instruments directly from packaging and after sterilization.
- Precleaned, sterilized, and tested used instruments for pathogens using bacterial growth observation in Todd-Hewitt broth.
Main Results:
- Sterilization was 100% effective for unused burs and files.
- Sterilization was less than 100% effective for used instruments.
- Contamination rates post-sterilization ranged from 15% for used burs to 58% for used files.
Conclusions:
- Dental burs and endodontic files from manufacturers are not sterile and require sterilization before initial use.
- Tested resterilization procedures were inadequate for used instruments.
- More effective sterilization methods are needed, or these instruments should be considered single-use.
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