Steam Sterilization – The Easiest Way of Sterilizing Medical Equipment

Equipment sterilization plays a vital role in public health. The methods, procedures and tools used for equipment sterilization are made specifically for the same purpose and follow the strictest standards in order to make sure that the well being of patients is not compromised at all. If equipment sterilization is not carried out properly, it will pose a threat not only to the health of the patients, but also to the medical staff at the facility. The ability of the facility to run as a smooth healthcare unit will also be severely impaired. Therefore, in the absence of appropriate equipment sterilization, backup procedures, hospitals, labs and other medical facilities will cease to function as competent healthcare providers.

All the medical equipment that is currently in use can be very loosely categorized into 4 different categories: diagnosis equipment, life support equipment, therapeutic equipment and laboratory equipment.
No matter which device is being used by the doctor, it is essential to maintain it in a proper manner so that maximum safety against infectious diseases can be ensured. With proper maintenance, all the medical equipment can be used for a longer time span since it also helps in extending the life of instruments.
There are, however, many implements, known as single use devices, that are not required to be sterilized since they are supposed to be used only once. All these instruments are discarded after usage. By virtue of their marginal costs, it is affordable to discard them after each use. However, in the case of costly medical instruments, discarding them after first use is not financially feasible and they are reprocessed by trained professionals. Equipment sterilization is carried out so that medical practitioners are able to use these instruments again and again.
Steam sterilization is a simple and easy method of sterilizing medical equipment. For this purpose, an autoclave is used which carries out the steam sterilization process with the help of pressured steam. The instruments are put inside a chamber for the necessary exposure period. There are charts as well as gauges in an autoclave that provide all the required information about the pressure inside the autoclave, as well as its temperature. The process of steam sterilization is validated to achieve a probability of not less than one non-sterile unit in one million or a sterilization assurance level of 10-6.
Equipment that needs to be treated with steam sterilization must be placed inside the autoclave separately so that they are not touching each other. It is imperative that there is some empty space left between the items. The items must not be crammed inside the autoclave otherwise its performance will be impaired.
Reputed labs and hospitals have professionals who know how to use an autoclave for carrying out optimum steam sterilization.
When liquids in a sealed container such as pre-filled syringes or aseptically manufactured liquids in glass vessels are steam sterilized, an air over pressure steam sterilizer is used. For heat labile molecules method development to achieve sterilization without compromising potency or stability is performed.
Gibraltar Laboratories enjoys an impeccable reputation as a health care service provider. The company boasts a long list of satisfied clients.