Research: Dental Procedures Are Safe in Pandemic

Photo: Image licensed by ingram image

A new study from The Ohio State University dispels the misconception that patients and providers are at high risk of catching COVID-19 at the dentist’s office. The study was published in May in the Journal of Dental Research.

Because SARS-CoV-2 spreads mainly through respiratory droplets, and dental procedures are known to produce an abundance of aerosols, fears were that flying saliva during a cleaning or a restorative procedure could make the dentist’s chair a high- transmission location.

The Ohio State University researchers set out to determine whether saliva is the main source of the spray, collecting samples from personnel, equipment and other surfaces reached by aerosols during a range of dental procedures.

By analyzing the genetic makeup of the organisms detected in those samples, the researchers determined that watery solution from irrigation tools, not saliva, was the main source of any bacteria or viruses present in the spatter and spurts from patients’ mouths. scaling procedures in The Ohio State College of Dentistry between May 4 and July 10, 2020. Researchers collected samples of saliva and irrigants before each procedure; 30 minutes after the procedure, they collected condensate from providers’ face shields, the patient’s bib and an area 6 feet away from the chair.

Genome sequencing technology allowed the researchers to first characterize the microbial mix in preprocedure saliva and irrigants, which they could then compare to organisms in the aerosol samples collected later. With the analytical method they used, the researchers did not need to characterize the microbes — they instead looked for variations in sequences that provided enough information to identify the family of bacteria or viruses to which they belonged.

Even when low levels of the SARS-CoV-2 virus were detected in the saliva of asymptomatic patients, the aerosols generated during their procedures showed no signs of the coronavirus. In essence, from a microbial standpoint, the contents of the spray mirrored what was in the office environment.

For the study, the team enrolled 28 patients receiving dental implants and restorations using high-speed drills or ultrasonic No matter the procedure or where the condensate had landed, microbes from irrigants contributed to about 78% of the organisms in aerosols, while saliva, if present, accounted for 0.1% to 1.2% of the microbes distributed around the room.

Salivary bacteria were detected in condensate from only eight cases. Of those cases, five patients had not used a preprocedural mouth rinse. The SARS-CoV-2 virus was identified in the saliva of 19 patients but was undetectable in aerosols in any of the cases.

Learn more about this study in the Journal of Dental Research (2021); doi.org/10.1177%2F00220345211015948. n