#19 in a series

Practicing proper infection control procedures is the responsibility of every student, staff and faculty member with clinical responsibilities. With the fast-paced nature of the clinical environment, it is sometimes easy to overlook basic infection control policies. To help raise awareness about these issues, we've created this series of infection control reminders and pointers. For questions about infection control policies or more information, contact the School of Dentistry's Director of Health and Safety, Dr. Molly Newlon at: newlonm@dentistry.ucsf.edu.

A "sterilizing agent" creates the conditions in which microorganisms cannot survive.

• Autoclave: pressurized steam is the sterilizing agent
  
  
• Chemical Vapor Sterilizer: produces hot vapors of alcohol/formaldehyde as its sterilizing agent
  
  
• Dry Heat Sterilizers: very high temperatures act as the sterilizing agent
  
  

Best regards,

Charles N. Bertolami, DDS, DMedSc

Dean