COVID 19 dental protocols during COVID will make sure you visit the safest dentists.
It has been almost a year since the coronavirus has entered our lives. From forcing us to wear masks to washing our hands excessively and turning us into complete germophobes, it has affected us in different ways. Thousands have died and many more are infected. Scientists are hard at work trying to find a solution for the disease we now know as COVID-19. Until then we all have to adjust ourselves to these new conditions and stay safe.
But everything changes when your tooth starts to hurt. And you just can’t bring yourself to go to the dentist.
One of the most important measures to avoid COVID is to wear a mask and there is no way to do that in a dentist’s office. You have to sit for hours with an open mouth where someone else who might have been infected has sat. This is a sure way to catch COVID, right?
Not according to the new protocols.
The American Dental Association (ADA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published guidelines for dental offices to see patients safely. Now they have updated the dental protocols during COVID so more patients can visit the safest COVID dentists.
In this article, we will take a look at these updated guidelines and address your concerns when it comes to visiting the dentist.
What Are the Updated COVID 19 dental protocols?
When the pandemic started, ADA and CDC advised patients to only visit the dentist when they had a dental emergency such as a broken tooth or intolerable pain. They also determined dental protocols during COVID to help patients go to the safest COVID dentists every time. This measure helped hospitals too, because more protective equipment were saved for emergency responses to COVID patients.
But deciding whether a dental condition is an emergency or not can be tricky. Your non-emergency toothache can turn into a chronic condition and have dangerous consequences. On the other hand, ADA has stated that no COVID cases have been caused by dental practices to date and dentists believe that by following strict precautions, patients can avoid the coronavirus and tend to their oral health.
So CDC has updated its guidelines and published new dental protocols during COVID so more offices can reopen and accept patients. Although dentists had to follow most of these guidelines even before COVID, now they are intensified and patients can see for themselves if they are visiting the safest COVID dentists.
But many people still have concerns. We are going to talk about 5 of them.
5 Concerns in COVID Dentistry
You might still have concerns that keep you from visiting the dentist and you don’t even want to know what the new dental protocols during COVID are. You would rather go through the pain than risk your life.
These concerns are real and you’re not the only one who has them. A lot of people are ignoring their oral health and delaying their visit to the doctor because they are afraid to catch COVID.
Let’s take a look at some of these concerns.
1-Aerosols and Droplets
Aerosols and droplets are the main carriers of the coronavirus. These respiratory particles float in the air and land on different surfaces. When infected people talk, cough, or sneeze, these aerosols and droplets leave their mouths. You can easily inhale these particles and get infected. That’s why we are told to wear masks.
But you can’t wear a mask when you’re visiting the dentist. You’ll be sitting in a closed space with your mouth open wide and this is a great opportunity for the virus to enter your body. Especially if an infected patient was sitting in that chair before you.
2- The Dental Health Care Personnel (DHCP)
The dentist and his staff come in contact with many patients in a day, some of which might be infected. A drop of blood or saliva from a COVID patient is enough to infect the dental health care personnel (DHCP) themselves.
Then the DHCP will tend to your teeth and in a moment of neglect, transfer the lethal virus to you and the ones after you. And it might take a while for them to realize what’s going on and stop this deadly chain.
3-Other Patients
Dental procedures can be unpredictable and take longer than expected. When this happens, the number of patients in the waiting room increases, and the office gets crowded. It can be hard to keep the recommended distance of 3 feet in this situation and social distancing is one of the most important measures in avoiding COVID.
4-Dental Equipment
Many of the equipment in a dental office are reusable and travel from one patient’s mouth to the other. Although these equipment are disinfected between seeing each patient, if they are not sterilized completely, they can transfer the virus right into your mouth.
Considering that the DHCP have to follow all the precautions and they will be exhausted by the end of the day, a small moment of carelessness while cleaning the equipment can be all the virus needs to stick to them and enter the next patient’s body.
5-The Environment
Like we mentioned before, the respiratory particles settle on different surfaces in the dentist’s office. These particles can be infectious for up to 72 hours. The chance of catching COVID this way is less than the other methods, but if you touch one of these contaminated surfaces and then touch your eyes, nose, or mouth, you can transfer the virus to your body.
These are serious concerns that can lead to infection and even death, so it’s logical for you to have them. But the updated dental protocols during COVID are here to specifically address these concerns.
What COVID 19 Dental Protocols Should I See When Visiting the Safest Dentist?
We don’t know how long we’re going to be dealing with the coronavirus and we can’t ignore our oral health. So the goal of the new dental protocols during COVID is to protect the DHCP and direct patients to the safest COVID dentists.
There is a protocol in place for every one of your concerns and we are going to see how they can help and ease your mind.
1-Protocols for Respiratory Hygiene
These protocols are in place to make sure that the infected aerosols and droplets will not be floating in the air for everyone to inhale them.
You should see the first precaution when you enter the dental office. A sign with instructions about covering your mouth with a tissue when you cough, disposing of the tissue, and washing your hands after. The DHCP should provide you with tissues, masks, and washing facilities.
Some dentists take the safety measures even further and install air filtration systems in the office. You can see this in the office of Dr. Kezian, where he has put up a HEPA air filtration unit in the waiting area and one where he operates on the patients. Dental procedures create more aerosols and this air filtration unit will capture them the second they leave the patient’s mouths. You can see how this system works in the video below.
2- Protocols for the DHCP
The dentist and his staff are immunized for different types of infections and routinely checked. If any of the DHCP has signs of infection, he/she will not be attending work. This way they won’t put any of the other personnel or patients in danger.
The DHCP working in the office have to follow very strict precautions to protect themselves and the patients. Hand hygiene is the number one precaution and they have to wash their hands thoroughly before and after seeing each patient and working with equipment. They also have to wear personal protective equipment (PPE) like face shields, a different pair of gloves for every patient, and clothes that cover their entire skin so that splashing blood or saliva won’t contact their skin.
3-Protocols for Patients
Before the appointment, patients will fill out a form declaring their health status and before entering the office, the DHCP will check their temperatures to make sure they are healthy. The appointments will be scheduled in a way so that only one patient will be present and the patients will be asked to come alone or only bring one person with them.
There is always the chance that other patients might show up. Dentists might ask the new patients to wait in their car until their turn. They will also prepare for that by rearranging the office settings in a way to allow social distancing.
You can see in the office of Dr. Kezian that some chairs are marked and patients can’t sit on them. This will make sure that the 3 feet distance is kept at all times.
4-Protocols for Equipment
There should be a sterilization process in place for reusable equipment and done by trained personnel wearing the appropriate PPEs. Each of the equipment should be sterilized based on their risk for transmitting the disease and the instructions of the manufacturer.
For this purpose, the equipment will be divided into three groups: critical, semicritical, and noncritical items. The critical category includes instruments that penetrate the bones and tissues and have the highest risk of carrying the infection. These items should be sterilized using heat. The items in the semicritical category contact the mucous membranes, but these should also be sterilized with heat. If they are sensitive to heat, they should be replaced with a heat-tolerant device. The noncritical category includes instruments that only touch the skin and a disinfectant is enough for their sterilization. The new protocols also contain guidelines for the disposal of sharp objects such as needles.
5-Protocols for the Environment
The reception area should be separated to minimize the contact of patients with the staff. After each patient, different surfaces like doorknobs and chairs should be cleaned using hospital-grade disinfectants. Some areas that are hard to clean should be covered with surface barriers.
If blood spills on a surface, it should be disinfected immediately to minimize the risk of transmission.
So You’re Saying it’s Safe to Visit the Dentist During COVID?
Yes! If the dentist is taking these precautions, it’s completely safe to visit the office, even during COVID.
It goes without saying that you should take care of your oral health at home, but if you feel like you need to see the dentist, you don’t have to worry anymore. The new dental protocols during COVID will make sure you visit the safest COVID dentists and take care of your teeth while avoiding the coronavirus. If you’re worried that not all dentists will follow these precautions, don’t be. Any dental office that doesn’t take these precautions will be in big trouble.
But if you want to be sure that you are going to the safest COVID dentist, you can call the office of Dr. Arthur A. Kezian. Dr. Kezian and his team take these precautions very seriously to provide the safest conditions for your visit.
Please stay safe by following all the COVID 19 Dental Protocols so we can defeat this vicious disease. Until then, if you’re in need of a dentist, you can reach out to Dr. Kezian and schedule your appointment.
Dr. Michael A. Kezian DDS
581 N. Larchmont Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90004
(323) 467-2127
https://www.larchmontdentalassociates.com
References:
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – Guidance for Dental Settings
- American Dental Association – Return to work toolkit
- WebMD – Coronavirus and Dental Care