Medical science has come a long way in the last 200 years, and major breakthroughs such as germ theory and sterilization have played a large part in that positive trend. More than ever, surgery has become much safer and far fewer patients today die of infections caused by medical procedures. This is largely due to germ theory, which in turn led to new standards of cleanliness and sterilization in many applications. The concept of sterilizing equipment goes back to the mid 1800s, and today, technology such as tattoo autoclave sterilizers and an autoclave for veterinarian clinics allow for very high standards of sterilization. A tattoo autoclave sterilizer will make any used tattoo needle safe to use again, and a hospital or vet’s office will have something similar to offer. A medical autoclave for sale may be found when a hospital’s staff looks for new equipment from local wholesalers, and autoclave repair is also an important service to call upon. What is there to know about autoclaves, such as a tattoo autoclave sterilizer?
Sterilizing a Surface
A medical implement will certainly be cleaned and washed after use, and that practice is quite an old one. However, doing so only cleans off blood and similar debris, and cleaning does not fully remove all bacteria, viruses, or microscopic parasites from an item’s surface. In fact, studies show that bloodborne pathogens can survive for up to a week on the bare surface of a metal item, making an un-sterilized surgical tool dangerous to use. Fortunately, the concept of sterilization was launched when in the 1800s, a French chemist named Louis Pasteur started boiling metal items to kill off all bacteria and viruses on them. He called this sterilization, and he often heated items to 120 degrees Fahrenheit to kill off pathogens. The idea of using heat to kill off pathogens endured, and it led to today’s innovations such as tattoo autoclave sterilizers and the like.
Today, autoclaves take sterilization to the next level, beyond anything Mr. Pasteur did. An autoclave is a machine that can emit heated, pressurized steam into its interior, quickly killing any pathogens found on it. Typically, autoclaves feature temperatures as high as 250 to 270 degrees Fahrenheit, and that steam may be pressurized to 30 psi or so. An autoclave may e shaped somewhat like a toaster oven, with a door so that users can place medical items inside to be sterilized.
Care for an Autoclave
There is no doubt that autoclaves are extremely important for upholding today’s standards of safety at hospitals, vet clinics, and tattoo parlors. But these machines are not indestructible, and the user must take care to use the correct settings and prevent damage to an autoclave. These machines may sometime break down or wear out like any other machine, and a busted autoclave may mean that a work site cannot uphold necessary standards for clean items. A damaged autoclave should be repaired at once, and the owner can call upon local repair experts to help. To be on the safe side, an autoclave’s user should subject it to a weekly spore test, as the CDC recommends for all autoclave users. If the autoclave fails that test, then the machine proves itself unable to kill all pathogens on items as needed. If the machine is too busted for repair work, a new one should be ordered online.
A work site that uses medical equipment such as a tattoo parlor, a hospital, an emergency care clinic, or a veterinary clinic will need to order an autoclave wholesale for work. A newly built business will need a number of wholesale pieces of equipment, an autoclave among them. These machines may vary somewhat in their size and price, and the staff at a hospital or clinic or tattoo parlor may seek out an autoclave that fits their need. A small tattoo parlor may need only a small autoclave, while a large and busy hospital may need a large one or even buy more than one to keep up with demand. These autoclaves may be found on a manufacturer’s website, or refurbished ones can be found on the online secondary market on sites such as eBay and others.