The effect of routine steam autoclaving on orthodontic pliers

Five commonly used types of orthodontic plier of similar design, but different manufacture were evaluated for wear and corrosion following a 6-month regime of routine use in a hospital department together with steam autoclaving in a centralized unit. Three different types of manufacture (metal finish) were evaluated: (1) a stainless steel plier; (2) a chrome plated plier; and (3) a cheaper chrome plated plier. Four identical kits for changing archwires were assembled for each of the three manufacture types. A sixth 'plier', always of chrome plated manufacture (group 2) was added to every kit and acted as an additional control. In all, 72 pliers were evaluated by three observers immediately before and after the trial. Visual analogue and rank scales were used to assess corrosion, damage, the efficiency of the plier, etc. Generally, all of the pliers stood up well to a combination of routine clinical use and steam autoclaving; however, the stainless steel pliers appeared to perform the best. It is likely that the most important factor, when setting up this type of sterilizing method for orthodontic instruments, is to establish a careful and meticulous routine for cleaning, lubricating, and steam autoclaving pliers.