Infection Control (complete) Flashcards
Which are ways that infection may spread in a dental clinic
- airborne organisms
- improper sterilization
- Direct contact
- Indirect contact
According to Spauldings classifications, When is an instrument needing critical disinfection? and what is the process of disinfection
Critical is when equipment has entered sterile tissues, including the vascular system
They need cleaning followed by sterilization
According to Spauldings classifications, When is an instrument needing Semi-critical disinfection? and what is the process of disinfection
Semi-critical is when equipment comes into contact with non-intact skin or mucus membranes, but hasn’t penetrated them
They need cleaning, with high level disinfection as a minimum. (sterilization is preferred)
According to Spauldings classifications, When is an instrument needing non-critical disinfection? and what is the process of disinfection
Equipment that touches intact skin, or doesn’t touch the patient
the need cleaning, followed by low level disinfection (some cases cleaning alone is acceptable)
What is sterilization
the complete absence of life
what is disinfection
destruction of vegetative pathogens, usually on inanimate objects
What does the suffix - cides mean
agents that kill
what does the suffix - static mean
agents which prevent growth
What is sepsis
bacterial contamination and growth
What is antiseptic
agent which destroys vegetative pathogens (usually on living tissue)
What is sanitation
Lowering bacterial counts to safe public health levels
is the death rate of microbes log linear
yes, a certain percentage of the bacteria die over time
what is D-value (death of microbes)
the time required to kill 90% of bacteria (1 log) at a specific temperature
How do log reduction and percent kill relate
for each log reduction 90% of the bacteria are killed 1 log = 90% 2 log = 99% 3 log = 99.9% 4 log = 99.99%
Which is better at disinfecting, sanitizing, and sterilizing: Moist heat or Dry heat
moist heat (dry heat requires longer time, and higher temperatures)
how does heat kill bacteria
by denaturing proteins and destroying cytoplasmic membranes
What are the four methods of microbial control that use moist heat
- boiling
- autoclaving
- pasteurization
- Ultra-high temperature sterilization
What can boiling kill in terms of microbes
vegetative cells of bacteria and fungi
viruses
protozoan trophozoites
What is important to consider when boiling to kill microbes
the boiling time (more time if at higher locations
What can’t boiling kill in terms of microbes
endospores
protozoan cysts
prions
What is autoclaving
when pressure is applied to boiling water, which prevents the escape of steam. this leads to increased temperature (121 C)
Does autoclaving kill endospores
yes
What is historical (batch) pasteurizaition
heating up something to 63 degrees celcius for 30 minutes
What is flash pasteurization
72 degrees celcius for 15 seconds
When do you use dry heat to sterilize
when you have materials that will be damaged by moist heat, or those that can’t be sterilized with moist heat