When to Replace Dental Equipment
In order to keep your practice operating smoothly and provide your patients with the best possible care, it is important to ensure that you are routinely maintaining your equipment – as well as replacing it, when necessary. Within this article, we will discuss how to identify when your dental equipment needs replacement.
Understanding the Importance of Dental Equipment Maintenance
Properly maintaining your dental equipment and tools is crucial for extending their lifespan and ensuring that they are fully operational for as long as possible.
Below are some of the best practices for maintaining your dental equipment:
- Regularly lubricate all dental handpieces and send them out for repair when necessary
- Have x-ray equipment inspected and calibrated each year
- Check and clean the master trap on a monthly basis
- Regularly check compressor oil
- Lubricate and disinfect dental chair parts regularly
- Check and clean delivery unit traps regularly
- Change out O-rings on handpiece couplers weekly
- Change out handpiece gaskets weekly
Typical Lifespan of Common Dental Equipment
- Dental Burs: The lifespan of your dental burs can vary depending on factors such as the quality, rotational speeds, usage frequency, operator skill, sufficient cooling, sterilization practices, and storage.
Diamond burs typically last somewhere between 10-15 uses, while carbide burs can be expected to last 5-10 uses. Of course, depending on the factors listed above, you may experience a shorter or longer lifespan for your burs.
- Apex Locators: Apex locators are intelligent electronic devices that are used in endodontics to detect canal length. If properly used and maintained, these devices can last for years – decades, even.
- Hand instruments: The lifespan of your hand instruments depends upon the quality of the instruments themselves, frequency of use, the skill level of the user, and sterilization methods.
For this reason, dental instruments can last anywhere from a number of months to a number of years.
- Curing lights: Modern dental curing lights are designed to be exceptionally efficient and long-lasting. When properly used and maintained, these devices can last years.
The longevity of your dental handpieces can be increased with proper use, care, and maintenance. This means being regularly cleaned and lubricated, changing out O-rings and turbines when necessary, and proper use.
Another important part of handpiece maintenance is ensuring that they are sent out for repair whenever necessary.
Factors Determining Replacement of Dental Equipment
There are a few things that should be considered in order to determine if it is time to replace your dental equipment. Consider the following:
Deteriorating Equipment Performance
In order to provide your patients with the best possible care, it is important to ensure that your equipment is fully functioning at all times.
Be sure to regularly assess your equipment’s overall performance. This will help you determine if it is properly functioning. If you have noticed that your equipment has been falling short or malfunctioning on a regular basis, it is likely time to consider replacing it.
Compliance with Regulatory Standards
Ensuring that your equipment is in compliance with regulatory standards also means ensuring that your equipment is safe for both patient and provider, effective at its given task, and communicates properly with modern dental technology as a whole.
Signs That Your Dental Equipment Needs Replacement
Below are some of the most common signs that your dental equipment needs to be replaced.
- Unexpected Breakdowns and Constant Repairs: Unexpected equipment breakdowns can be a massive inconvenience for both dental professionals and patients alike.
Moreover, if you are frequently repairing essential pieces of equipment, you may find that investing in a complete replacement may be much more cost-effective in the long run and will provide a more enjoyable and professional experience for all involved.
- Obsolete Technology: Technology is constantly improving and advancing – especially in dentistry. In many cases, older technology may fall short of its expected tasks and will not function correctly in conjunction with other pieces of equipment.
Investing in newer dental technology will ensure that practice operations can run smoothly and all of your equipment is compliant with current regulations. It can also help ensure that your practice remains a strong competitor in your local area; patients take comfort in knowing that their dentist makes use of the very best technology and equipment.