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Dental Office Waste Disposal

Medical Waste Disposal Services Arizona offers a complete waste disposal program specifically for dental offices.

Today's dental offices are busy places.  Patients come needing cleanings, x-rays, fillings, root canals, crowns and more.  All of this can cause a logistical circumstance that pulls dental professionals away from what they do best.

Dental Waste

We offer a full-service approach that fits today's dental office waste needs.

  1. Sharps Disposal (Dental)

    • Sharps containers must be appropriately labeled

    • Puncture resistant and leak-proof

    • Should be visible and easily reachable by the person using the sharps, and not placed in high-traffic areas, under sinks, inside cabinets or near light switches.

    • Download our Sharps Management for more details

  2. Blood-Soaked Gauze (Biohazard)

    • Main Trap Filter

    • Proper disposal steps include packaging it in a leak-resistant, puncture-resistant red disposable plastic bag with a universal biohazard symbol.

  3. X-Ray Fixer (Silver)

    • Used x-ray filter solution contains a high amount of silver, and is therefore considered a hazardous waste, requiring it to be handled by a hazardous waste management company.

    • Used x-ray fixer must never be flushed down the drain.

    • X-ray developer that is mixed with used fixer solution must also be disposed of through a dental waste disposal company.

    • Unused developer contains a toxic substance called hydroquinone, which cannot be flushed down the drain. Both unused and used developer should also never be disposed of into septic systems.

  4. Amalgam Waste (Mercury)

    • Chairside traps and filters used in vacuum systems must be properly disposed of.

    • Both disposable and reusable amalgam traps, amalgam separators, vacuum pump filters and other sources of mercury (such as relays, switches, thermostats and mercury thermometers) must be disposed of through a hazardous waste hauler like Medasend.

  5. Pharmaceutical Disposal (Dental Anesthetic Carpules)

    • If the carpules contain residual anesthetic in all states except Minnesota, they should be disposed of in a container properly labeled for transport as pharmaceutical waste to a medical waste incinerator. Why not place them into your regular medical waste container? Medical waste is treated by autoclave; since autoclave treatment does not breakdown pharmaceutical waste, incineration is required.

    • Carpules that contain visible blood are classified as sharps medical waste and must be placed in a sharps container for proper disposal.

    • Empty, unbroken carpules that contain no remaining anesthetic or aspirated blood cannot be placed in the trash for general waste disposal. Unbroken carpules go into a sharps container due to the fact that carpules could break.

    • If carpules are broken but contain no blood or anesthetic, they are classified as medical waste, and offices must discard them into the sharps container for employee and waste-worker safety.

  6. Dental Waste Storage Time

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