Studies on Dental Aerobiology: I. Bacterial Aerosols Generated during Dental Procedures

Abstract

A controlled environment operatory and specially designed human aerosol test chamber were used to study characteristics of bacterial aerosols generated from a patient's mouth during dental procedures and by common naso-oral activities. Some dental procedures generated aerosols with bacterial concentrations that exceeded those produced during coughing or sneezing and that were considered potential health hazards.

Aerosols How Dangerous They Are in Clinical Practice

“…How far these aerosols spread and what level of contamination they cause in the dental surgery has become a matter of growing concern [15][16][17].…”

Aerosol contamination in a rural university dental clinic in south India.

“…1 the terms "aerosol" and "splatter" in the dental environment were used by Micik r E et al in his pioneering work on aerobiology. 2 Aerosols were defined as particles less than 50 micrometers in diameter. Particles of this size are small enough to stay airborne for an extended period before they settle on environmental surfaces or enter the respiratory tract.…”

“…the smaller particles of an aerosol (0.5 to 10 μm in diameter) have the potential to penetrate and lodge in not for citation purposes Aerosol contamination in a rural university dental clinic Acharya the smaller passages of the lungs and are thought to carry the greatest potential for transmitting infections. Splatter was defined as airborne particles larger than 50 μm in diameter behaving in a ballistic manner, 2 which are ejected forcibly from the operating site and are in a trajectory similar to that of a bullet until they contact a surface or fall to the floor. These particles are too large to become suspended in the air and hence airborne only briefly.…”

Reduction in Number of Airborne Bacteria by Air Cleaning Devices in a Closed Space

“…With these instruments, contami-I.nated water sprays are disseminated in greater quantities t,an before, and there is little doubt that microbial concentrations in the air of dental operatories have increased. 2-5 Micik et al 6 found that a number -f dental procedures emp!oying water sprays and rotary instruments disseminated aerosols with bacterial concentrations greater than those associated with coughing or sneezing. Because there is strong evidence that a number of diseases can be transmitted by the airborne route, 7 questions have been raised about potential dangers from the microbial concentrations in dental operatories.…”