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The overall goal of all effectiveasepsis programs is to prevent transmission of pathogens (germs) from one person to another. There are several levels of decontamination in a dental office, depending on the use of the object being decontaminated. Any surgical instrument that is reused from patient to patient in a surgical site, such as headpieces burs, hand instruments, blades, sutures, etc. must be either disposable or sterilizable. The definition of sterile is "absence of all life forms". There are four acceptable ways to sterilize in a dental office. 1. Steam (autoclave). 2. Chemical vapor (Chemiclave). 3. Dry heat (Oven) 4. Ethylene Oxide (Gas). Each has specific guidelines for temperature, pressure, length of time, etc. that must be followed to assure success. Routine testing of the method and machine with chemical indicators or spore tests are required to confirm effectiveness. The next level is high level disinfection. This involves completely submerging objects in a vat of 2.65% glutaraldehyde solution for an extended period of time (over night). This is used for reusable objects that can not be conventionally sterilized such as glass, plastic, or rubber goods like hoses, etc. These objects are used during surgeries but are not actually placed into the surgical site. The third level is decontamination. This is used on cabinets, counters, chairs, door handles, etc. An effective chemical agent must be used such as phenol, iodine, hypochlorite, etc. Surfaces must be kept wet for a certain number of minutes depending on which agent is used, for the agent to be effective. The final level is general cleaning which applies to floors, walls, etc. and requires scrubbing with a good medical grade germicidal soap and water.

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