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Contamination of Dental Surgical Masks by Aerosols Generated During Different Dental Treatments.

Authors :
Stähli A
Nhan RF
Schäfer JM
Imber JC
Roccuzzo A
Sculean A
Schimmel M
Tennert C
Eick S
Source :
Oral health & preventive dentistry [Oral Health Prev Dent] 2024 Dec 03; Vol. 22, pp. 631-638. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Dec 03.
Publication Year :
2024

Abstract

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic raised the question about the extent of microbial exposure encountered by dentists during dental therapy. The purpose of this study was to quantify microbial counts on surgical masks related to duration and type of dental therapy, as well as patient oral health variables.<br />Materials and Methods: Sterile filter papers were fixed on surgical masks used during routine daily dental therapy. Thereafter, the filter papers were pressed onto blood agar plates for 1 min, before the agar plates were incubated with 10% CO2. After 48 h, the colony forming units (CFU) were counted and microorganisms were identified. The dependence of the CFU counts on treatment and patient-related variables was analysed using linear regression.<br />Results: Filter papers obtained from 322 dental treatments (429 masks) were included in the final analysis. On average, 5.41 ± 9.94 CFUs were counted. While mostly oral bacteria were detected, Staphylococcus aureus was also identified on 16 masks. Linear regression, incorporating patient-related and treatment characteristics through step-wise inclusion, revealed statistical significance (p 0.001) only with the variable 'assistance during therapy'. The type of dental treatment exhibited a trend, with fewer CFUs observed in caries treatment compared to periodontal or prosthodontic therapy. Furthermore, after analysing filter papers from masks used by dental assistants in 107 dental treatments, fewer CFUs were found on the masks compared to those used by dentists (p 0.001).<br />Conclusion: The mean number of CFUs observed consistently remained low, highlighting the efficacy of the implemented hygiene measures. Consequently, it is clinically recommended to support dental treatment with precise suction of the generated aerosols.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1757-9996
Volume :
22
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Oral health & preventive dentistry
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
39625349
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3290/j.ohpd.b5866891