5 Most Recommended Dental Handpieces - and How to Sterilize Them Properly According to their IFU

I recently came across an article in Dental Country written by Sean Myran, DDS, in which he lists his top 5 recommended dental handpieces. This got me thinking, what is the required sterilization parameters for each of these handpieces.

I decided to do the hard work for all of you and track down the IFUs for each of the 5 listed handpieces. Here are the 5 that Dr. Myran recommends:

1.??????MASTERtorque LX M8900 L by KaVo Dental

2.??????Titan 3 Low-Speed Handpiece by DentalEZ

3.??????Midwest Stylus Plus by Dentsply Sirona

4.??????INTRAflex LUX 2 2307 LN by KaVo Dental

5.??????430 SW Torque High-Speed Handpieces by DentalEZ

Now regardless of whether or not you agree with his list (Dental connections: Please feel free to comment on which handpiece you would recommend using and I will find their IFUs for you as well if you are interested) of the top 5 handpieces, let's take a look at each of their validated sterilization cycles.

1.??????MASTERtorque

a.??????Gravity Type Autoclave

????????????i.?????At least 10 minutes at 132C (270F) with a 30-minute dry cycle

b.??????Autoclave with 3-time pre-vacuum

????????????i.?????At least 3 minutes with a 16-minute dry cycle

2.??????Titan 3 Low-Speed

a.??????Gravity Type Autoclave

?????????????i.?????Minimum 15 minutes at 132C (270F)

????????????ii.?????Minimum 30 minutes at 121C (250F)

b.??????Pre-vacuum

?????????????i.?????Minimum of 4 minutes at 132C

3.??????Midwest Stylus

a.??????Gravity Steam Sterilization

????????????i.?????Full Cycle 121C (250F) for 30 minutes

???????????ii.?????Full Cycle 132C (270F) for 15 minutes

b.??????Dynamic Air Removal

?????????????i.?????Full Cycle 132C (270F) for 4 minutes

????????????ii.?????Full Cycle 135C (275F) for 3 minutes

4.??????INTRAflex Lux 2

a.??????Gravity Type Autoclave

?????????????i.?????At least 10 minutes at 134C (273F)

b.??????Autoclave with 3 times pre-vacuum

??????? ????i.?????At least 3 minutes at 134C (273F)

5.??????430 SW Torque High-Speed

a.??????Gravity Type Autoclave

?????????????i.?????Minimum of 15 minutes at 132C (270F)

?????????????ii.?????Minimum of 30 minutes at 121C (250F)

b.??????Pre-Vacuum Autoclave

???????????? i.?????Minimum of 4 Minutes at 132C (270F)

c.??????NOTE: Do not exceed 135C (275F)

Now you will begin to notice a couple of things if you read each of those sterilization cycles and you know a thing or two about how autoclaves work and what a gravity-type autoclave is versus an SFPP autoclave and again versus a Pre-Vacuum autoclave.

1.??????Most of them list a gravity and Pre-Vacuum, they do not include a validated sterilization exposure time for SFPP autoclaves (Midmark M9 and M11 new series). Leaves a big question mark for Midmark users.

2.??????If you do not have a Pre-vacuum autoclave (Something like Tuttnauer’s T-Edge Series, W&H’s Lexa, Statim’s Bravo, or Tuttnauer’s Elara 11) then you are looking at the gravity cycles - they are significantly longer exposure times.

3.??????Some handpieces, like the Midwest Stylus, can be sterilized with DYNAMIC AIR REMOVAL as opposed to directly calling out Pre-vacuum. While this is a hotly debated topic amongst those who understand the major differences in how desktop vs freestanding autoclaves work, technically a Midmark M9 or M11 is considered a ‘Dynamic Air Removal’ type autoclave as it uses what is called an SFPP (steam flush pressure pulse) and so, therefore, can be used to sterilize this handpiece. Also, as a quick side note, Dynamic Air removal includes two types of autoclave air removal methods – SFPP and Pre-Vacuum (Of Which Pre-Vacuum is the more effective method when it comes to desktop autoclaves)

Each of the IFUs can be found at the links below:

MASTERtorque – Click Here

Titan 3 -?Click Here

Midwest Stylus Plus - Click Here

INTRAFlex Lux 2 - Click Here

430 SW Torque High Speed - Click Here

If you want to read Dr. Myran’s article you can also find that here - Click Here