Question
Asked 28th Sep, 2017
Can we use industrial drills for orthopedic surgery?
since the drill are made of plastic,it is possible for them to be completely sterilized? and they are packed in bags that are also plastic.
Most recent answer
I think the times where industrial tools could be used for surgery after sterilisation are past here in Belgium. Although I do agree that some expensive surgical material is exactlove you the same as safely sterilised industrial bolts and nuts (for example in Ilizarov procedures). Furthermore high quality and high standard hospitals should fulfill obligated criteria in order to obtain or maintain a high quality patient care.
All Answers (7)
Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Industrial
In Argentina the tools are only metalic tools (stainless steel). Inclusively they are not industrial tools.
Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy
No, the plastic ordinary drill could not be completely and safe sterilized. Is possible to sterilize special plastic devices in gamma radiations or ethylene oxide, but is expensive and not very profitable.
Government Medical College, Haldwani
The plastic drills apart from above-mentioned facts pose challenges in following manner -
1. No standardisation of torque or rpm or heat generated whether it is ideal for bone tissue
2. Usually they lack reverse functions so in order to remove guide wire or drill, extra pressure is required this increasing cha ces of guide wire or drill breakage
3. Internal wire disfuction or short circuit , if present, incraeseas chance of combustion and burn severe than metal ones
4. Vibration effects during drilling hard diaphyseal bone may be more and thus cumbersome and hazardous to prolong use.
2 Recommendations
St George's, University of London
Many less developed world hospitals use commercial " hardware" drill for orthopaedic surgery; usually wrapped in a sterile drape, although this clearly somewhat compromises sterility. The problem is that dedicated, sterilisable battery or pneumatic drills / saws are prohibitively expensive and "hand drilling" is difficult and takes time. Arbutus medical ( http://arbutusmedical.ca ) now produce sterilisable, reusable drill and saw bags. The drill bag uses a bayonet fitting to a De Walt drill that can be bought at hardware stores for as little as $100.
2 Recommendations
I think the times where industrial tools could be used for surgery after sterilisation are past here in Belgium. Although I do agree that some expensive surgical material is exactlove you the same as safely sterilised industrial bolts and nuts (for example in Ilizarov procedures). Furthermore high quality and high standard hospitals should fulfill obligated criteria in order to obtain or maintain a high quality patient care.
Related Publications
Objectives:
Cortical bone drilling for preparation of screw placement is common in multiple surgical fields. The heat generated while drilling may reach thresholds high enough to cause osteonecrosis. This can compromise implant stability. Orthopedic drill bits are several orders more expensive than their similarly sized, publicly available industr...