Do dentists through out their tools or clean them?!
Question: im curious.. do dentists use new tools each time they have a new patient (although i do not think so because thats way too expensive) or do they clean them or what the heck do they do? they need to be really careful with this. Please tell me what do they actually do.
i think reusing them is discusting also, so i dont think they do that. what do they do?
Answers: im curious.. do dentists use new tools each time they have a new patient (although i do not think so because thats way too expensive) or do they clean them or what the heck do they do? they need to be really careful with this. Please tell me what do they actually do.
i think reusing them is discusting also, so i dont think they do that. what do they do?
The disposable items (gauze, cups, suction tips, fluoride trays, impression trays, etc.) are discarded after each use, as well as the burs that are used in the handpiece (drill).
After use, the instruments are first scrubbed and then placed in the ultrasonic cleaner. After they are rinsed and dried, they are then placed into dated sterilization bags and sterilized.
Needles and anesthetic carpules are discarded into a 'sharps' container, and the syringe gets sterilized the same way the rest of the instruments do.
In addition, the chair, bracket table, counters, etc. in the operatory are cleaned between each patient as well. Plastic barriers are replaced after each patient as well.
It's alot of work, but you have to stay on top of infection control, cross-contamination and indirect transmission of the organisms that hang out in a dental office.
:)
Some tools have disposable tips, the end that goes in your mouth. However, what they do is they sanitize & reuse their tools.
Some tools are used once for a patient and then disposed of, but others are reused after being sterilized. Some equipment has parts that are thrown out and replaced, but the main part of the equipment is reused.
It depends on the tool. Some of a dentist's equipment will cost pennies, other pieces of equipment cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. They can't just throw away a drill that costs more than your house... there wouldn't be any dentists left in the world!
Don't worry, any equipment that they reuse will be thoroughly cleaned and sterilized before reaching your mouth.
my aunt whos a dentist, takes the tips the small stuff and throws out, but the big stuff that you cant throw away she puts in this chemical and like bakes it? in this special oven type thing... and it even kills hepatitus, which is extremely hard to get rid of on stuff... hopefully your dentist does same procedures...
If they are disposable, then they throw them away, but if they are not disposable, the metal ones, then they sterilize them. First they put them in an ultrasonic cleaner to remove debris (saliva, blood, ect...) then they are placed in individual bags and put in an autoclave (like a big oven). Test are done on the autoclave every so often to make sure all of the bacteria and viruses are killed.