An evaluation of the performance of autoclave devices in the sterilization process using biological method in dental Clinics of Birjand in 2019: Short Communication

Today, due to the high prevalence of infectious diseases and the risk of infection transmission in dental clinics, the control of infectious agents is critically important in dentistry. Given the importance of proper autoclave performance in dental processes, the aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of autoclave devices in the sterilization process using biological methods in dental clinics in Birjand. In this analytical cross-sectional study, all 65 dental clinics in Birjand were included. After collecting the questionnaire about equipment sterilization process and the characteristics of the autoclave, a vial containing spores of Geobacillus stearothermophilus was used for biological monitoring of autoclave devices. At the end of the autoclave cycle, the biological vials were incubated for 24-48 hours at 55 °C. Data were analyzed using Chi-Square or Fisher exact tests in SPSS 18 software. Among 46 clinics (71%) participating in this study, 36 clinics (83.7%) used class B autoclave. Out of 34 (77.3%) clinics that monitored the performance of the autoclave, 24 clinics (70.5%) used the chemical method, 6 clinics (17.5%) used the physical method and 4 clinics (12%) used biological methods. In the biological monitoring of the autoclave sterilization process in this study, the performance of one autoclave (2.2%) was reported to be inappropriate and this had a significant relationship with the number of autoclave uses. Despite the fact that biological monitoring of autoclave performance was not carried out in many dental clinics in Birjand, the results of this study showed that the autoclaves of a large number of dental clinics had good performance in the sterilization process. Given the importance of validating autoclave performance in dental processes, the quality control of autoclave devices in dental clinics can be taken into consideration.