Portable Sterilizer

[Adah Orhenkowski]

AMSCOLS Series Medium Steam Sterilizers provide fast, efficient autoclave sterilization heat-and moisture-stable materials in scientific applications. They are equipped with pre-vacuum, gravity, liquid, leak test and daily air removal (Bowie-Dick) test cycles.

STERIS is committed to partnering with you to maintain, certify and protect your investment. Learn more about our full portfolio of Service offerings including equipment service, controlled environment service, and genuine OEM parts. Together, we can maximize your results while maintaining compliance and safety.

Each sterilizer is designed to process loads at temperatures ranging from 110 C to 141 C. Pre-vacuum, gravity or liquid cycles can be selected by the user. Critical cycle parameters are user programmable. Several pre-programmed cycles are available to accommodate typical applications.

STERIS's AMSCO Century 26x37.5 Medium Steam Sterilizer is a medium steam sterilizer requiring two preventive maintenance inspections annually. These inspections should be conducted semi-annually with Inspection 1 requiring parts replacement.

The Baby Brezza One Step Sterilizer Dryer Advanced is the most advanced way to sterilize & dry bottles, pump parts and baby accessories. This revolutionary appliance kills 99.9% of germs with natural steam, then automatically dries 33% faster. It has the largest capacity of any sterilizer, holding 8 bottles, 2 full pump part sets, pacifiers and accessories from any brand. And its HEPA filter ensures it dries with 95% germ-free air. Now you can sterilize and dry your baby products the EASY way! BPA-FREE. 1-year limited warranty.

Our portfolio of Sterilizer Cleaning Brushes includes various brushes designed for thoroughly cleaning the inside and outside of the sterilizer equipment. These brushes feature long handles for greater reach and bristles at a forward angle or flare-head design to assist with enhanced cleaning ability.

The University of Iowa Sterilizer Monitoring Program provides biological monitoring tests for sterilizer users across the country. We offer weekly and monthly testing programs to meet the requirements for dental offices, medical clinics, spas, and tattoo studios. Our many years of experience with monitoring allow us to provide prompt, knowledgeable, courteous service to our clients.

Infection control regulations require use of a sterilizer monitoring service. The Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry provides high-quality biological monitoring for all types of office sterilizers. We provide instructions for using the test strips and test result reports so you can document your compliance. The cost is $199.00 annually per sterilizer.

You can order our sterilizer monitoring service either online or download and complete our order form and mail with a check for the full amount. We also accept Visa and MasterCard. Please allow 10 business days from receipt of your order for delivery.

Of all the methods available for sterilization, moist heat in the form of saturated steam under pressure is the most widely used and the most dependable. Steam sterilization is nontoxic, inexpensive 826, rapidly microbicidal, sporicidal, and rapidly heats and penetrates fabrics (Table 6) 827. Like all sterilization processes, steam sterilization has some deleterious effects on some materials, including corrosion and combustion of lubricants associated with dental handpieces212; reduction in ability to transmit light associated with laryngoscopes828; and increased hardening time (5.6 fold) with plaster-cast 829.

The two basic types of steam sterilizers (autoclaves) are the gravity displacement autoclave and the high-speed prevacuum sterilizer. In the former, steam is admitted at the top or the sides of the sterilizing chamber and, because the steam is lighter than air, forces air out the bottom of the chamber through the drain vent. The gravity displacement autoclaves are primarily used to process laboratory media, water, pharmaceutical products, regulated medical waste, and nonporous articles whose surfaces have direct steam contact. For gravity displacement sterilizers the penetration time into porous items is prolonged because of incomplete air elimination. This point is illustrated with the decontamination of 10 lbs of microbiological waste, which requires at least 45 minutes at 121C because the entrapped air remaining in a load of waste greatly retards steam permeation and heating efficiency.831, 832 The high-speed prevacuum sterilizers are similar to the gravity displacement sterilizers except they are fitted with a vacuum pump (or ejector) to ensure air removal from the sterilizing chamber and load before the steam is admitted. The advantage of using a vacuum pump is that there is nearly instantaneous steam penetration even into porous loads. The Bowie-Dick test is used to detect air leaks and inadequate air removal and consists of folded 100% cotton surgical towels that are clean and preconditioned. A commercially available Bowie-Dick-type test sheet should be placed in the center of the pack. The test pack should be placed horizontally in the front, bottom section of the sterilizer rack, near the door and over the drain, in an otherwise empty chamber and run at 134C for 3.5 minutes.813, 819 The test is used each day the vacuum-type steam sterilizer is used, before the first processed load. Air that is not removed from the chamber will interfere with steam contact. Smaller disposable test packs (or process challenge devices) have been devised to replace the stack of folded surgical towels for testing the efficacy of the vacuum system in a prevacuum sterilizer.833 These devices are "designed to simulate product to be sterilized and to constitute a defined challenge to the sterilization process."819, 834 They should be representative of the load and simulate the greatest challenge to the load.835 Sterilizer vacuum performance is acceptable if the sheet inside the test pack shows a uniform color change. Entrapped air will cause a spot to appear on the test sheet, due to the inability of the steam to reach the chemical indicator. If the sterilizer fails the Bowie-Dick test, do not use the sterilizer until it is inspected by the sterilizer maintenance personnel and passes the Bowie-Dick test.813, 819, 836

Another design in steam sterilization is a steam flush-pressure pulsing process, which removes air rapidly by repeatedly alternating a steam flush and a pressure pulse above atmospheric pressure. Air is rapidly removed from the load as with the prevacuum sterilizer, but air leaks do not affect this process because the steam in the sterilizing chamber is always above atmospheric pressure. Typical sterilization temperatures and times are 132C to 135C with 3 to 4 minutes exposure time for porous loads and instruments.827, 837

Like other sterilization systems, the steam cycle is monitored by mechanical, chemical, and biological monitors. Steam sterilizers usually are monitored using a printout (or graphically) by measuring temperature, the time at the temperature, and pressure. Typically, chemical indicators are affixed to the outside and incorporated into the pack to monitor the temperature or time and temperature. The effectiveness of steam sterilization is monitored with a biological indicator containing spores of Geobacillus stearothermophilus (formerly Bacillus stearothermophilus). Positive spore test results are a relatively rare event 838 and can be attributed to operator error, inadequate steam delivery,839 or equipment malfunction.

Portable (table-top) steam sterilizers are used in outpatient, dental, and rural clinics.840 These sterilizers are designed for small instruments, such as hypodermic syringes and needles and dental instruments. The ability of the sterilizer to reach physical parameters necessary to achieve sterilization should be monitored by mechanical, chemical, and biological indicators.

The oldest and most recognized agent for inactivation of microorganisms is heat. D-values (time to reduce the surviving population by 90% or 1 log10) allow a direct comparison of the heat resistance of microorganisms. Because a D-value can be determined at various temperatures, a subscript is used to designate the exposure temperature (i.e., D121C). D121C-values for Geobacillus stearothermophilus used to monitor the steam sterilization process range from 1 to 2 minutes. Heat-resistant nonspore-forming bacteria, yeasts, and fungi have such low D121C values that they cannot be experimentally measured.841

Moist heat destroys microorganisms by the irreversible coagulation and denaturation of enzymes and structural proteins. In support of this fact, it has been found that the presence of moisture significantly affects the coagulation temperature of proteins and the temperature at which microorganisms are destroyed.

Steam sterilization should be used whenever possible on all critical and semicritical items that are heat and moisture resistant (e.g., steam sterilizable respiratory therapy and anesthesia equipment), even when not essential to prevent pathogen transmission. Steam sterilizers also are used in healthcare facilities to decontaminate microbiological waste and sharps containers 831, 832, 842 but additional exposure time is required in the gravity displacement sterilizer for these items.

Medical and dental practices and other sterilizer-dependent offices are required to provide proof of sterilizer function. The Sterilizer Monitoring has been an important part of meeting that standard of practice for more than 800 clients across the northwest and across the country. Coupling 24 hour turnaround of test results with email notification allows us to provide service second to none. Secure storage of results provides our clients with safe, off site storage of test records and rapid retrieval if needed by our clients.

Biological monitoring of sterilizer function depends on the sterilizer killing the test organism. Because bacterial spores are the most resistant form of bacteria, spores have been the most common test material. The test strips supplied by the Sterilizer Monitoring Service are imbedded with spores of two species of bacteria; Geobacillus stearothermophis and Bacillus atrophaeus. Why use two species? Bacillus atrophaeus spores are notoriously resistant to heat, making them perfect for testing heat only sterilizers like ovens. Geobacillus stearothermophis is a thermophilic bacteria, original isolates in the thermal pools of Yellowstone. They are cultured at 55 C, too hot for almost every other bacterial species. This reduces the chance of a false positive result to essentially zero. G. stearothermophis is the test species for steam and chemical sterilizer units.

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