Reusable instruments

Despite this reusable hand instruments are almost always chosen over single use ones, with 80 per cent of respondents making exclusive use of them.

In December, 2015, a survey was conducted amongst dental professionals to explore their knowledge and propensity to consider single use versus reusable dental instruments.  

The results show that there are a number of key drivers behind the decision by practices to use reusable hand instruments despite the fact that 60 per cent stated that they do not meet all their practice needs.

Cost efficiency was cited as the main reason for adopting reusable instruments, and this was followed by infection prevention, convenience, patient and staff safety, and insufficient knowledge about the potential single use alternatives. Mandatory regulatory requirements and assured instrument quality were also factors which have dissuaded dentists from looking at alternatives to reusable instruments.

There is probably a good reason for this. Single use hand instruments have not been seen as a viable choice. This is despite the fact that single use hand instruments offer a number of significant cost and clinically related benefits: