Steam sterilization - sterilization equipment for treatment with saturated steam under pressure, effectively destroys all types of microorganisms.
The steam sterilizer -filled with medical instruments in contact with the surface of the wound, blood or injecting drugs. This may be fabric, rubber, metal and glass.
Medical steam sterilizers are composed of three vertical steel cylinders, placed one inside the other. The inner cylinder - is a sterilization chamber. Middle cylinder is filled with water, which when heated turns into the steam. This chambers communicate with each other through the notch made in the sides.
The outer cylinder - housing - protects the camera from heat loss. Steam sterilizers are equipped with a pressure gauge and safety valve. Under the bottom of chamber there is the heat source of water.
Sterilization equipment can be horizontal or vertical.
The horizontal sterilization equipment equipped with a doors, loading and unloading is carried out with one hand. These devices are called unilateral or impassable. Steam Sterilizer with two doors, located opposite one another, called bilateral. This makes possible to separate the sterilization area by a wall into two halves: a preparatory (dirty) and aseptic (clean).
For temperature measurement there are a clinical thermometer.
Only pathogens for which there are no effect of steam sterilization - a prion, slow neuroinfections pathogens, are resistant to high temperatures. Even after autoclaving at 134 ° C for 18 minutes, it is impossible to achieve complete destruction of prions. Resistance to high temperatures is even more increased if prions are withered to a metal or glass surface or if the samples before autoclaving were exposed to formaldehyde.
Regular version