Introduction:
This study evaluated a dry heat sterilizer having a 21-minute, waterless processing cycle which can reduce or eliminate instrument corrosion by employing high-velocity hot air (HVHA™),a significant advance in sterilizing dental instruments. Elevated sterilization temperatures of 375° F (191° C) used in this process could potentially affect handpiece components or decompose some hydrocarbon-based oil lubricants specific to handpiece reprocessing. In the first phase of our validation of the RH-Pro11 sterilization system, we measured the performance of new and used handpieces before and after 250 sterilization cycles using a synthetic lubricant to validate its compatibility with the sterilization process and handpiece function. In this study, we further validated handpiece compatibility with the RH-Pro11 by expanding testing to 500 sterilization cycles, while also applying load to the handpieces via Stall-Torque measurements every 50 cycles to give an increased challenge to the handpieces.
Conclusion:
Handpieces evaluated from 4 different manufacturers showed no decrease in performance through 500 cycles of sterilizer use.
