Many estheticians & medical professionals alike have recently been questioning the efficacy of glass bead sterilizers in the face of the newer Autoclave systems, putting the Autoclave as the gold standard for sterilizing implements. A new study done by Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois (wow try saying that one real fast 5 times!) identified that this is not actually true! If interested here’s how they deduced it:
The Background:
- The use of sterile instruments is of the utmost in a clinical setting.
- Glass bead sterilization may effectively disinfect instruments using dry heat, rather than steam under pressure or chemical means.
- We are unaware of any reports in the literature evaluating this technology in podiatric practices.
- Autoclaving is currently the gold standard for sterilization, while Cetylcide II is commonly used in clinical practice.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of Glass Bead Sterilization in comparison to that of the Autoclave and Cetylcide II.
The Methods:
- Sterilie trypticase soy broth (TSB) was inoculated with each of the following organisms: E.coli, S.epidermis, S.aureus, and P.aeruginosa.
- Instruments were autoclaved and then assigned to groups A, B or C, representing sterilization by Autoclave, glass Beads, and Cetylcide II, respectively.
- Each set of instruments were soaked in 80mL of contaminated TSB for 30 minutes and allowed to dry for 10 minutes.
- Instruments were rubbed with a sterile cotton swab which was then plated on Sheep Blood Agar to ensure contamination.
- Instruments were then sterilized as stated above and rubbed with a sterile cotton swab then plated on Sheeps Blood Agar to determine the presence of bacteria.
- Bacillus spore strips were independently inserted into the Glass Bead Sterilizer for 10s and into the autoclave for 30 minutes.
Here are the findings:
Organism |
Autoclave |
Glass Bead Sterilizer |
Cetylcide II |
E.Coli |
NG |
NG |
NG |
P. Aeruginosa |
NG |
NG |
NG |
S. aureus |
NG |
NG |
+ |
MRS A |
NG |
NG |
NG |
C.albicans |
NG |
NG |
NG |
S. epidermidis |
NG |
NG |
+ |
Spore Strips |
Pass |
Pass |
N/A |
NG = No Growth (effective) + = Bacteria still present |
As demonstrated above, glass bead sterilization is as effective as the use of an autoclave and provides more effective means of sterilization than Cetylcide II. Long term use of a glass bead sterilizer may be more cost effective than the use of Cetylcide II because beads only require replacement every 3 months and glass bead sterilization is effective in only a fraction of the time required by an autoclave or Cetylcide II. Passing the Bacillus spore strip test implies that in 10 seconds (!), the Glass Bead sterilizer effectively destroys even the most heat resistant bacteria.
So in conclusion, this study has demonstrated that Glass Bead Sterilization, for clinical use, is as effective as using an autoclave and is more effective that Cetylcide II.
So there you have it chaps, Glass Bead sterilization is the fastest for disinfecting your tools! If you're looking for more awesome tips and information on how to improve your spa, salon or esthetics business, make sure to check back every week on the Esthetician's Corner!
Cheers,
Corinne :)
My experience has been though that the five different public health inspectors I’ve had don’t accept the glass bead sterilizer.